Keeping You in the Aftermath
by maki0202
Summary: Set immediately after Jurassic World. It's never too easy between Claire and Owen, but staying together may be the easy part as they soon realize trouble is far from being over.
1. Chapter 1

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **A/N: Takes place immediately after "Jurassic World." Thanks for reading!**

 **. . . . . . . . .**

 **Chapter 1**

"I can't…."

"What?"

"I'm not ready for that…them…and all of those…"

Claire pointed at the slew of news reporters and camera men converging onto the entrance of the park, just as they stepped out of the make-shift resting compound. The raucous was joined by a multitude of flashing lights, from the swarm of cameras huddled like hungry masses upon the tantalizing piece of meat. Owen placed his hand gently on her back, "Well, here comes the new breed of raptors."

"Let's not joke about new breeds…it's too early."

"Right…sorry…"

Claire had yet to take another step forward, her feet firmly glued in absolute resistance to the scene before them. Soon, it was inevitable that they will reach her, and perhaps demand a statement, if not at worst barrage her with questions she had yet to understand herself. Owen examined her face, in all of its furrowed brows and ashen countenance, "Claire…"

"Yes…?"

"Why don't you come to my cabin? For a little while? You don't have to face them, not today."

"Owen…I can't just disappear."

"Yes, you can. You're in no condition to talk to them. You need to rest, and…" He wiped a smudge of dirt on her cheek with his calloused fingers, "…you need to get yourself cleaned up."

"Your cabin…?"

"Yes, my cottage, shack, bungalow, a man cave…or whatever you wanna call it. Just don't call it a crib." Then he looked around the surroundings, and upon spotting his friend Barry by his Jeep, he guided her with his hand upon her back, "Come on…let's get out of here."

. . . . . . . . . .

"Welcome to my humble abode…"

With a sigh of relief and respite, Owen opened the door of his cabin and stepped aside for Claire to enter. She poked her head in first, to which he protested, "Hey, nothing is alive in there…you'll be surprised how clean it is."

Indeed, he was right. She stood at the doorway and gingerly studied the cozy space, consisting of a small couch in the center, a kitchenette in the left corner, and a door to the right, which presumably led to his bedroom and perhaps a bathroom. She was surprised to find that everything was kept to a functional minimum, and the clutter that she had expected was pleasantly not existent. Rather, even the kitchenette boasted of order and method, with rows of cups and plates neatly stacked in its rightful place.

"What were you expecting…beer bottles everywhere? Dirty boxers on the couch? Playboy magazines strewn about?"

"Owen…"

He laughed with a deep gusto, and walked over to the kitchenette, opening the small fridge. He pulled out two cold bottles of beer, and offered one to Claire, "You're gonna appreciate this…"

"I'm really not a beer drinker…"

"Oh, Claire…" She was sure he had just rolled his eyes at her, but was immediately distracted by him uncapping a bottle in one swoop, and taking a long swig of the beer. He must've gulped down the entire bottle, if not most, and didn't even flinch as some oozed down his neck. Claire decided she wasn't going to be concerned with how his shoulder muscles seemed to relax, and even his arm muscles as they flexed leaning against the fridge. No, she decided she'd rather concern herself with how the oozing beer was ruining his shirt. How disgusting and filthy.

"You want some?" Owen's voice jolted her out of the fleeting revelry, and as she locked eyes with Owen, she squirmed under the rushing heat rising to her cheeks. "Claire, you alright?"

"Yeah…"

"Here…" He offered her the bottle he had just drank from, "Take a sip. You know you want some…come on, live on the wild side once in a while."

"You're offering me the bottle you just slobbered on…"

"Claire, with all that we've been through, you should be able to drink my own saliva if it'd help you survive."

"That's…that's disgusting."

"We could practice later, if it'd help."

"No."

He laughed again, and drank the last of his beer, then looked at her squarely, "So…do you wanna go first, or should I?"

"What?"

"Shower…you do want to shower, don't you?"

"I don't…have anything…"

"No worries…" He sauntered toward the closed door on the right side of the cabin, "You can borrow my stuff."

She followed him into his small bedroom, feeling shy and hesitant at first, but he showed no qualms as he opened a drawer of a tall wardrobe by the bed. Then he produced what looked to be a white T-shirt and a pair of grey sweatpants, "I don't know if the pants will fit you…but these are the best I can do."

"Thanks…"

"Claire…oh, Jesus Christ…"

"What?"

"Yes, you're in my bedroom and yes, that's my bed. Don't get so weirded out…we're not some damn teenagers."

"I'm not weirded out…"

"Relax, Claire. Look, we're practically…" He paused with a glint in his eyes, "We went out on a date…we kissed…so that makes us…"

"One busted first daters."

"We can kiss again if you want to be convinced of that…"

"Owen…" She threw him a warning glare, and snatched the clothes from his hands, "Where the hell is the shower?"

"Alright, alright…" He raised his hands in a mimicked surrender, but the smirk on his face told otherwise, "It's the door on your left."

She turned to the door in an instant, not giving him any more satisfaction of her annoyance, and definitely not wanting to see that smirk lingering on his smug face.

. . . . . . . . .

Claire didn't know how long she was in the shower, or how long she had stood under the steady streaming of hot water, washing her clean of all the dirt, the anxiety and the terrors of the day. She closed her eyes and allowed the memories to course back to her mind, being released from the walls that she had reinforced in the company of others. She was afraid…that once she started to feel…or remember…then, she would be reduced to tears and to admit that she was scared to death of what was going to happen next. The terrors of the Indominus Rex was over…but what about now? What happens now? And how would she able to handle it?

And even at the moment she told herself she had to be strong, her tears formed quickly and streamed down her face, and she didn't even try to muffle the sobs that escaped to the surface. The truth was that she didn't feel strong…but she'd be damned if she let herself seem weak and incompetent. With the death of Masrani, it'd be expected that she shoulder the consequences and responsibilities, with no one else to share it. This was her problem now, and she had to handle it…alone.

Claire turned off the shower with determination, wiping herself dry with the firm resolve that that was the last time she'd cry over the situation. This was her mess, and she'd never allow herself to be the damsel in distress whose tears are used to garner sympathy. No, she'd never become that.

She picked up the clothes that Owen had given her, and allowed her fingers to linger over the soft cotton. She looked over the white T-shirt, choosing not to focus on the surprising fact that he had retained the shirt in its white, and instead, she brought it to her nose and took a deep inhale of its scent. It smelled of freshly laundered cotton, but also a hint of dark musk, that of a man. What she sensed was Owen…this was his scent, a mixture of laundry soap, engine grease, grass, and a healthy dollop of his after-shave thrown in.

"Snap out of it." She told herself, as she put on the shirt with hurried zeal. It was wrong…or ridiculous…to even entertain the idea of Owen, as their little _thing_ , or their little making-house, was all but temporary. Their retreat will soon end, and he will no longer be needed in her world. He's got no business in what awaits her, and if it was left entirely up to her, he'd never have to see her ever again.

Claire stepped out of the bedroom, all but tempted to ask Owen if he had a clean comb lying around, but he was gone. Instead, she found a note attached on the fridge.

 _Claire,_

 _Went to get some food. Be back in thirty. Don't panic and don't miss me too much._

 _Owen._

Claire snorted in muffled laughter and shook her head…he's always had an unexpected way of making her laugh, even with that ridiculous machismo act. She set down the note on the counter, but skipped her breath a slight as soon as she spotted a coffee maker, with freshly brewed coffee. Owen had made coffee for her…and it was exactly what she needed…

"Oh, Owen…I love you…" Claire muttered to herself, but immediately caught the words with her hand cupped over her mouth, lest anyone hears it as the words materialize in the tangible world. She gulped hard at the shock of the escaped sentiment…surely, it wasn't literally that she loved Owen, it was more of an appreciation for the coffee…

"Hey, what's going on?" Then as on cue, Owen appeared at the door, carrying two large brown bags.

"Nothing…I'm just…thanks for the coffee." She turned away from him to pour herself a cup, but it was really to hide the remnant of her blushing, if it was called that.

"Not a problem. And those pants fit you well enough."

"Yup…"

"The shower felt good, didn't it?"

"Sure did…"

He set the bags on the counter and just as he was rummaging through it, he eyed her attempting to comb her hair with her fingers. "Claire…your hair…leave it alone."

"What?"

"I like your hair all messed up and natural…you look softer, more approachable. Definitely more attractive." He dared forward, "Not like that straightened up and uptight…you know what I mean?"

"No, I don't know what you mean…"

"You're a beautiful woman, Claire. But most men are not gonna go for that boarding school head master look…"

"Really…it sure didn't stop you…"

"I'm not like most men."

"Actually, you're _very_ typical, a dime a dozen."

Owen let out a hearty laughter, and set out several cans of food, along with a loaf of bread and some fruits, "I scrounged what I can from the park kitchen…but it was a mess."

"What's going on out there?"

"Just…relax and enjoy your coffee."

"Owen…" Claire set down her mug of coffee on the counter, "Stop it…"

"Stop what?"

"Stop trying to protect me."

"Claire…"

"That was…my park, my job, my responsibility. And I have to deal with what happened…" She then looked around the cabin, "You have a TV, don't you?"

"Right behind you."

She turned around, and found a small portable TV on the counter, "If you're not going to tell me, then I'll look at it myself."

And just as she clicked on the power knob, Owen reached with his hand and clicked it off. She faced him with fuming anger, "What the hell…"

"Claire, calm down…"

"Don't tell me to calm down…"

"Here's what we're gonna do…I'm going to take a shower, because I stink like a raptor's breath. And you're going to wait until I come out of the shower, and we're gonna watch together. Got that?"

"You can't order me around like I'm some ridiculous teenager…"

"Claire…I'm asking you." He brushed away a wisp of hair that had fallen across her face, "Please…"

She eyed him petulantly, feeling every bit a teenager whose crush was standing a breath away from her, and it didn't help that his eyes flickered quickly to her lips, "Fine."

"Good. I won't take long, so just _wait_."

"I said, fine."

He smiled at her, finding some contentment in her response, then made his way toward the bedroom. And as soon as he closed the door, and she heard the shower running, she quickly turned on the TV.

"The hell I'm gonna wait for you…" She muttered to herself as she turned the control knob, and it wasn't difficult to find news coverage of the Jurassic World, as it was plastered just about every channel. She settled on the national news cast, with the reporter broadcasting on sight.

" _So, what you have here is a complete break down of safety and security, as well as any viable means of defensive and offensive mechanism. As of now, the park is still in the process of capturing a velociraptor, a Tyrannosaurus Rex, and a whole horde of other pre-historic species that were released due to this absolute horrific event. It is safe to say that this park, once heralded as the ultimate interactive entertainment, will not be seeing its heyday of open grandeur any time soon."_

" _It is reported that the CEO and the owner of the Jurassic World, Mr. Simon Masrani, is deceased from an accident. The specifics are still unknown, but it is believed that he was operating a helicopter that went down in the pterosaur aviary shortly after the event started."_

" _The park's remaining employees have been identified and released with their cognizance, such as one Mr. Lowery Cruthers, the park's technician and operator. And we will be bringing you an interview with Mr. Cruthers tomorrow at noon."_

" _We have yet to confirm the location of Ms. Claire Dearing, the park's operation manager, as well as Dr. Henry Wu, the chief geneticist and engineer. We certainly hope that both are safe, and we do seek a statement from both regarding the events of yesterday."_

"Damn it, Claire."

She turned around instantly, finding Owen glaring at her with his hair sopping wet, "You said you'll wait…son of a…"

"Give me your phone."

"What?"

"Your _phone_." She stuck out her hand in demand of it, not wanting to waste time arguing over some insipid broken deal, regardless of how his eyes glistened in anger.

"Why?"

"I need to call Lowery."

"And why would you do that?"

"He's giving an interview tomorrow. I'm going to make a statement then."

"Claire…" His softened tone startled her, "Do you really want to do that?"

"Yes…I need to."

With a heave of fitful sigh, Owen opened a drawer by the kitchen counter, and produced a small cordless black phone. And he handed it to her reluctantly, "Are you sure?"

"Yes…I'm sure."

She took the phone without hesitation, and dialed Lowery's number from memory. He picked up immediately as it rang, "Lowery?"

" _Claire? Where the hell are you?"_

"Doesn't matter. You're giving an interview tomorrow…"

" _KPIX station, at noon."_

"I'm gonna be there, with a statement."

" _Claire…everyone is looking for you."_

"I know…"

" _They're also looking for Dr. Wu. They're looking to blame this whole thing on someone, and with Masrani dead…"_

"Lowery, I know…"

" _If I were you, I'd keep a low profile tonight. And hopefully Dr. Wu will show up…this Indominus Rex crap is all his doing…"_

"Lowery, I'll see you tomorrow."

" _Right."_

Claire handed the phone back to Owen with a sheepish pause, and he took it with a stony face. He was upset…still upset…about her breaking their promise. "Owen…I'm sorry…"

"Claire, I'm not gonna fight with you over every damn little thing."

"I needed to do that…"

"I know you _needed_ to do that…but you don't trust me."

"Owen, I trust you…"

"That's a load of bull…"

"You saved my life…and the lives of my nephews and whole lotta people in that park."

"Gratitude and trust are two very different things, Claire."

It was then that she grabbed the nape of his neck and kissed him, herself not knowing why she did that, and certainly throwing all caution to the wind in absolute reckless abandon. She nestled into his broad chest, her arm wrapping itself around his shoulder, while her other hand remained on his neck, caressing the soft wet dirty blond hair. It look him a few seconds to take in what was happening, and once he was aware, he instantly grabbed her waist, drawing her closer and tighter into him. She sensed a satisfied growl from somewhere deep within him, just as he kissed her back with hungry ardor, suckling her lips with a teasing pull that perhaps drove her crazy if she let herself. Their first kiss at the park was quick and of circumstance…but this second kiss was of two people behind closed doors, in release of longing and desire, and could certainly lead to more.

"Claire…" He breathlessly whispered her name as they parted, as he inhaled in the scent of her skin, "If you think kissing me would make me forget that I'm mad at you…actually, I've already forgotten what we were talking about."

She giggled in amusement, and released her arms from him, but he was quite reluctant to let her go, "No, that wasn't my intention…"

"But I'm not opposed to your methods…not at all…"

"You're easier than I thought, Owen Grady."

"Oh, I'm easy…and proud of it."

Claire looked away from his eyes, as it was obvious he wanted to resume kissing again, and picked up a slice of bread and bit into it, "I told Lowery I'm ready to give a statement…"

"I heard…"

"Tomorrow, at noon…KPIX station."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"Oh, God no." She brushed the bread crumbs off her fingers, as if scoffing at the very idea, "I gotta do this on my own, by myself."

"Claire, I'm coming with you."

"No…don't…"

"And why not? Why can't you ever need someone with you?"

"Because this is my mess, Owen. And it's up to me…only me…to clean it up."

He shook his head, but locked eyes with her in fierce assurance, "I get that you think this is your mess and all that blah, blah, blah. First of all, Claire, this isn't _your_ mess."

"Owen…" She walked away from him, not wanting to discuss it further, but he followed her without losing a beat.

"And second of all, this isn't a mess _you_ have to clean up." He pressed on, "There was a lot of things that went wrong yesterday, but none of it is your _fault_ and certainly not your _responsibility_. All you did was survive it."

"Owen, I can handle this on my own."

"Damn it, Claire…"

"I don't need anyone to hold my hand and make me feel better about it, because it's not gonna get better for a very long time…"

"Claire…" He waited until she turned around to face him, "I want to be there for you…why can't you let me?"

"Owen, you don't want to be sucked into this mess."

"We can suck together…"

"Don't try to make me laugh…" She warned him with steely eyes, "Owen, your part in this is…done."

"My part? What does that suppose to mean?"

"I've decided to sign immunity for your employment, you're let go of any responsibilities or repercussions of the events that…"

"Are you out of your mind?"

"Owen…your record will be clean. You can get another job somewhere else…"

"Claire…" His wide eyes startled her, and he held her shoulders with both of his hands, "The hell I'm not done with this park. And the hell I'm not leaving you…"

"Owen…as much as you've protected me, you gotta let me protect you."

"Protecting me doesn't mean kicking me out of this park. Claire, you don't want to see me walk out that door."

"It's what's best."

"How can you say that? Claire...how can you not know how I feel about you?"

"Owen, I'm sorry...but I have made up my mind."

His hands dropped to his side, as if he was completely robbed of his strength, "Don't do this, Claire. Don't shut me out."

"It's what's best for both of us."

"And that's the thing, Claire. I don't think you know what's best for you, and hell you don't know what's best for me."

"Owen…"

"And that's why I'm not giving up on you."

. . . . . . . . . .

Claire woke up with a jolt, after a fitful night of sleep on Owen's bed. They had decided that she take his bed, and he was relegated to the couch, but sleep came difficult for Claire as her mind raced in all thousands of different directions. But most of all, it was difficult to settle with her heavy heart, as she couldn't explain even to herself why she felt suffocated with heavy dread as she replayed her argument with Owen…and the words she said to him. She was still firmly convicted that him released from the park was what was best for him. But he was right…she didn't want to see him walk out the door, and certainly she didn't want to be done with him. But her wants and her desires had to come second to protecting him.

She got up from the bed and gathered her clothes, and carefully tiptoed out of the bedroom. She spotted Owen's hulking figure on the couch, snoring slightly in deep slumber. She dared to crouch next to him, to sneak a peek at his face, of his peaceful sleeping face. And she was beyond tempted to caress his cheek and brush away that wild curly hair, and to give him a kiss on his forehead.

But she thought better of it, and quietly made herself toward the kitchen counter. On there she found a notepad and a pen, and she wrote him a note.

 _Owen,_

 _Thanks for the room and the shower. I'm sorry, but I have to do this on my own. Good bye._

 _Claire_

She set the note by the coffee maker, and as she opened the door of the cabin, she couldn't help the last look at him, wishing that they had existed under different circumstances.

. . . . . . . . .


	2. Chapter 2

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 2**

"Ms. Dearing, what is the genetic makeup of the Indominus Rex?"

"Excuse me?"

"What is the specific DNA of the Indominus Rex?"

Claire glanced at Lowery at her side, and he simply shrugged his shoulders and looked away from the spot light. When she drove to the KPIX station that afternoon, with the full intention of giving a statement regarding the Jurassic World catastrophe the day before, she had not anticipated a whole horde of reporters waiting for her. And the minute she stepped into the studio, the reporters afforded her no time for such a statement, as if she was the least significant figure in the incident. Rather, they clamored and bombarded her with questions regarding the true star and the culprit, the Indominus Rex.

"I was informed that it is a modified composite of several predatory dinosaurs and modern-day animals."

"Any specific identifications? Tyrannosaurus Rex?"

"Yes, I can confirm Tyrannosaurus Rex was one of the composites. The rest of the genetics is classified information, as according to Mr. Masrani."

"How about Velociraptor? There is a statement that the Indominus Rex was observed communicating with your raptors."

"I can confirm the incidence of the communication, but I cannot confirm whether velociraptor DNA was used."

"Ms. Dearing, why do you think the genetic makeup was a classified information?"

"I can't comment on that, as I don't know myself."

"You never thought to question it?"

"No."

"Is it possible that you have underestimated the threat level of the Indominus Rex?"

"I could not have underestimated that of which I had very little information."

Claire inhaled deeply, feeling the heat of the suffocating mass as the reporters closed in their distance to her, all holding their mics toward her face and the lights of the cameras burning into her eyes. Lowery had all but disappeared from her side, and she found herself standing alone, against the wall, and nowhere to go. The more she spoke, the reporters wanted more, and the only question in her mind was, how long should she go on before saying something she'd really regret?

It was then that she saw him…Owen. Their eyes locked in the instant when he walked through the door, and by the deep furrow of his brows, she knew he was worried for her. She'd be lying if she couldn't admit to the temptation of just pushing through this crowd, and run toward Owen, and let him take her away from there. But instead, she looked away from him, with a harsh rejection of his protective posture, and focused upon the reporters again. This was her mess, and she needed to handle it herself…without getting anyone else involved, especially Owen.

"Ms. Dearing, what can you tell us about Dr. Henry Wu?"

"He was our chief geneticist and engineer."

"And he designed the Indominus Rex?"

"Yes."

"Did he inform you anything about the Indominus Rex?"

"No, our communications were infrequent, and even less so regarding the Indominus Rex."

"How is it possible that you know so little about your potential main attraction?"

"Dr. Wu was the scientist…and I was just a sales man."

"Do you know the whereabouts of Dr. Wu at this moment?"

"No, I do not. And my only concern is that he is safe and sound."

"Ms. Dearing, what is your professional obligation to the Jurassic World from this point on? Will you be overseeing the rebuilding of the park, if in case that is in the works?"

"It would be presumptuous of me to make a statement regarding the park, as any decision is left to the board of directors at Masrani Corporation."

"Your professional obligation?"

"It is my intention to stay at the park to assist in the recovery of the park, for now."

"For now? How about after?"

"I am planning to resign."

Just then, an older woman appeared at Claire's side and grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the reporters as she called out, "Thank you, that will be all for today. Thank you."

"Ms. Dearing, come with me." The woman held Claire's arm firmly and with conviction pulled her though the throng of reporters, and Claire didn't feel it necessary to put up a resistance to her leading. The woman opened a door to a small side room of the studio, and promptly closed it behind Claire.

"Ms. Dearing, my name is Kathleen Walker, and I'm the spokesperson for the Masrani Corporation. The board of directors have an emergency meeting set for tomorrow at noon, of which your presence is requested and required. Is that understood?"

"Yes…"

"And Ms. Dearing, please refrain from stating that you will be resigning, as that decision is not entirely up to you."

"Excuse me?"

"Good bye, Ms. Dearing. We will be expecting you tomorrow at noon."

And just like that, she flung open the door and instantly disappeared from the room, robbing Claire even a sliver of breath to comprehend what had just been said to her, or even to protest or question it. Claire stepped out of the room, with the urgency to follow after her, but she was met with a familiar face at the door.

"Who was that woman?"

"Owen…" With an annoyed huff, she grabbed his arm and pulled him into the small room.

"Yeah, we can _consult_ here, if you want to. I'm game…"

"What the hell are you doing here?"

"I told you I'll come…so I came."

"What now, you're my knight in shining armor, and I'm suppose to fawn all over you…?"

"Claire, cut the crap…I came to see if you're alright…"

"Well, of course, I'm alright…"

"It sure didn't look like it."

"Well…I am. So you can leave now."

"You're just so damn stubborn, Claire." Owen's lips curled into a crooked grin as he took a shy step closer to Claire, showing none of the deterrence by her curt demeanor, "Did you sleep OK last night?"

"Owen…" She pushed him back with her hand upon his chest, and pointed at him and herself to signify them as a definite pair, "What do you think _this_ is?"

"I don't know…why did you kiss me?"

"You can't…" She had to remain calm…and say something smart. Definitely something that he'd actually believe. "You can't possibly think anything that happened in the heat of the moment has any bearing on substance and…"

"Claire, you and your words, blah blah blah…I stopped listening after 'heat'. So, let's talk about the heat…"

"I didn't mean _heat_ as in _heat_ …oh, never mind…"

"Keep saying that word, Claire, because that's exactly how I feel…" He took another audacious step closer to her, and she was certain he was tempted to grab her waist. She panicked in her own willingness to let him, and again pushed him back with her hand upon his chest.

"Owen, sorry to tell you that our relationship… _this_ between us…is strictly professional, and I most regret kissing you, had it misled you to assume otherwise."

"Strictly professional, huh? Right…sure…I think we should kiss again, just so that I'm convinced."

"There will be…no such thing, Mr. Grady."

"Mr. Grady?" And much to her dismay, he roared in laughter, "You're somethin', Claire. When are you going to snap out of this?"

"And moving forward, I would like to inform you that you're still fired."

"Oh, Jesus Christ…not this again."

"As I've said earlier…your records will be cleared and exempted from any implications of the incident…"

"Claire…"

"…but you are required to vacate the premises in five days."

And this time, it was Owen who stepped away from her, without her prompting. "Are you…are you even in the position to fire me? You yourself just quit…"

"As of now, I still have the authority to fire you."

"That's great…how convenient that you still have the authority to fire me, and you are going to exercise that authority…because firing me makes _perfect_ sense in light of _everything_ that has happened."

"I'm not discussing this with you again."

"It doesn't make sense."

"It makes sense that your records are clean."

"I don't give a damn about that shit."

He paced around the small room with his hands perched upon his waist, and Claire could see the seething anger in every heavy step he took. He refused to even look at her, but she stood rigid and with not an expression on her face…she wasn't going to budge, no matter how her own heart was trembling in woeful regret.

"No." Owen came to a halt, and looked at her squarely, "I can't leave, not now."

"Owen…"

"Blue is still out there."

"I'm aware…"

"You need me to get her back. She's not going to heed to anyone else, and trying to capture a raptor in an open field is nearly impossible…and dangerous."

"We can track her down and tranquilize her."

"No, that's not good enough. She's out there in the wild…she got to taste freedom and she won't give in without a good fight. And you can't afford any more men in the cost."

"What are you saying…"

"I'll leave…" Owen exhaled deeply, and muttered softly, "…after I find Blue. She needs to be brought in safely, and I'm the only one who can do it."

Claire probed into his eyes, and sensed that he was sincere in his intentions, and she wasn't going to disagree with him, not regarding Blue. "Fine. You can stay until you find Blue."

"Fine…"

. . . . . . . . .

"Damn it…damn it all to hell…"

Claire slammed the door of her apartment, wanting to shut out the world and all the cluttering noise, with its unrelenting questions and demands that wanted to prick away every part of her body and soul. She hastily took off her cream jacket and threw it carelessly upon the nearest chair, and she plopped down on the sofa with her feet forcibly freed from her high heeled shoes. She laid her head on the cushion, and breathed in for the first time in her memory.

Everything was still a mess, a whole stinkin' disaster. And this meeting with the board of directors the next day…she was sure she'd be fired and booted out of the state, and if she was particularly lucky, be slapped with a dozen lawsuits as her name gets to bail out the corporation. Masrani was dead, Wu had disappeared…and it was her name next on the sacrificial block, ready to be slaughtered for the good of the corporation.

At least Owen was spared. And at the return of his name in her heart, which occurred more frequently than she'd ever admit to, Claire closed her eyes at the pain of the memories of that afternoon. There was a relief in knowing that Owen will be exempted from this mess soon…but there was also great pain, of heartache and regret…of how she had treated him, of the words she had spewed out thoughtlessly and perhaps intentionally to dissuade him. The sentiments were cruel, especially in light of how he had essentially saved her life, but she had to do what was necessary to get him out of the park. It was what was best, for him…and even as he leaves in unforgiving anger, she had done her part to protect him.

But still, she couldn't help but to brush her fingers softly against her lips, in the tender memory of how he had kissed her. And in the fluttering of her heart that will not be quelled by the coolness of her mind, she dared to surrender to the beckoning of the thinnest whisper…that she cared for Owen…that she wanted him and loved him…

"No…absolutely unacceptable…and irrelevant."

Claire firmly told herself, again dismissing the luring of her own heart, and scoffed at being weak and giving in to her emotions. Rather, what she needed to do instead was choose to be rational, and being rational was placing Owen's interests first, which was his future outside of this park…and outside of this mess. She had to remain clear headed, with none of this useless and ridiculous emotional garbage.

Then she saw the folded clothes on the table…his t-shirt and grey pants. She had washed them that morning, and now the question lingered as to how she would return them. She could have someone drop them off at his cabin…or she could mail them to him…or leave them at his office…or…

"For cryin' out loud…this isn't some political ceasefire…"

With determination, Claire swiftly got up from the sofa and grabbed the clothes, and rushed out the door of her apartment.

. . . . . . . . . . .

It was close to nine o'clock at night when Claire drove into his cabin lot, and by the faint light flickering inside, she knew he was home. She looked around the surroundings, and in the dim light of the moon and scattered lights, she took in the sights and sounds of the serene lake, the timid whispers of crowing birds yonder, and the gentle swaying of the branches on the massive pine tree. And for the first time, Claire was struck with the simple beauty of the place, and understood why Owen lived there, why this was Owen's home.

She then gingerly stood on the front steps of the cabin, and inhaled deeply before knocking on the door twice.

"What are you doing here, Claire?" Owen's face was placid, but he was careful and hesitant, "What you need?"

"I came to give you these…and thank you…" She thrust the clothes toward him, herself not knowing why she felt nervous and bashful.

"Alright…" He took the clothes, but his hand didn't move from the door knob, "Anything else?"

"No…"

"OK, then…good night…"

"Owen…" She timidly called out to him, just as he was about to close the door, "I just wanted to say that…"

He stood there without a word, but with expectant eyes fixed upon her. "I just wanted to say that I'm truly grateful for everything you've done."

"You make it sound like I did it for charity."

"Owen…" He wasn't going to make this easy for her, but she also understood why. "You saved my life, and I'm never going to forget that."

"Yup…it'd be kinda hard to remember anything if you're dead, Claire…"

She dismissed his caustic jest, "And I'm sorry for how things turned out…"

"Oh, you mean how you kicked me to the curb? You're sorry about that?"

"Owen, you may not understand why I had to do any of that, but…"

"I understand it, Claire. I might live in this shack and talk to raptors for a living, but I ain't no fool, so don't treat me like one, and certainly don't talk to me like one."

"That's not what I meant…"

"Do you really think you're the only one in this conversation? Or are you so used to controlling people, telling people what to do that you can't function with another person with an actual thought?"

"Owen…"

"You know what your problem is, Claire? This job has gotten to your head, where everything is organized into neat piles, where everything is compartmentalized and belongs in their rightful places. Everything is separated, and nothing is connected."

He inhaled deeply and dared forward, "Your head and your heart are no longer connected, because you are that much removed from what's real and it's just too damn messy for you to bother. You don't feel things, Claire. And you don't give a damn about anything, but your job."

"Owen, you're wrong about me…"

"Doesn't look like it from this end."

"If you're angry at me, fine…I deserve it. But I didn't come here to fight with you…"

"No, you came here to give me back my clothes, because that is so imperative." He had now stepped out of the cabin, and stood a breath away from her, "Why are you here, Claire? Didn't you ask yourself why you chose to show up at my door this late in the night?"

"If you're suggesting that I…"

"I'm not suggesting anything, Claire. Just pointing out the obvious, which you refuse to acknowledge." And to her surprise, Owen stepped back into the cabin and proceeded to close the door behind him, "But what's done is done…I'll be out of your hair in about two days. I have a good idea where Blue might be, so I don't need the contractual five days to vacate."

"Owen…"

"Good bye, Claire."

. . . . . . . . . .

"They are ready for you, Ms. Dearing."

"Thank you."

Claire had waited merely two minutes until an attractive young woman appeared from behind the door, and signaled her to follow along the hallway. Claire breathed in deeply and clenched her fists tightly, getting ready to face whatever that was awaiting for her from the jury of the stoic twelve in the board of directors.

"Good afternoon, Ms. Dearing." A gaunt gentleman addressed her as she entered the room, and just as she sat on a lone chair in the middle of the room. Indeed, there were twelve men and women looking upon her, and their rigid countenance spoke only of dire business.

"Hello."

"Ms. Dearing, first and foremost, we want to commend you for your hard work during the most unfortunate incident. We do believe it was your sharp decision making and brave actions that saved thousands of people, as well as preserve the livelihood of the park itself."

"Thank you."

"And while we cannot discuss with you the specifics of how the incident impacts the park and the Masrani corporation, we are hard at work in rectifying and rebuilding what was lost and destroyed."

"Yes…"

"We are currently adapting two stages of recuperation. The first phase is thorough research and investigation into the cause of the incident, and to execute litigation if found applicable and permissible."

"Yes, I understand…and I take full responsibility…"

"Of what, Ms. Dearing?"

Claire looked into the eyes of the gentleman addressing her, and felt befuddled under his unassuming gaze, "The Indominus Rex getting out of the cage…the park…"

"Ms. Dearing, we can inform you that we find you neither culpable nor liable over the incident. We are in the process of investigating the science behind the modified species, and not the personnel given instructions on how to take care of it. We acknowledge and accept that you were not given any special information regarding the Indominus Rex, correct?"

"Yes."

"We are aware Mr. Masrani and Dr. Wu were involved in conversations regarding the modified species, and those are the conversations we are seeking and investigating."

"Of course…"

"Ms. Dearing, you fit into the second phase of the recuperation, which is rebuilding of the park. We have reviewed your records and, in light of your actions during the incident, we find you are perfect for the job."

"Excuse me?"

"We want to offer you the position of the executive director of the park. You will be responsible for not only the operation of the park, but more importantly, the rebuilding and reestablishing the viability of the park. That means exclusive personnel administration, safety engineering, viable logistics…whatever that will bring the park back to life, you will be the boss for it."

"I don't know what to say…"

The gentleman smiled at her, "Ms. Dearing, we understand you have expressed an interest in resigning from your position. But we find that you are the only person for the job, and we are willing to offer you whatever compensation you seek. And may I remind you, this is a considerable promotion."

"I just have one question…"

"Yes?"

"Are you…are you serious about this?"

Few of the members were seen laughing, but Claire didn't care how foolish she sounded. All of this…seemed like a dream, or a cruel joke if it ever was. "Yes, Ms. Dearing. We are serious about this, as you say. Now, will you accept the position?"

"Yes…of course, I do."

"Glad to hear it, and welcome aboard." The gentleman smiled and nodded at her, "We do have one requirement for personnel."

"Yes?"

"We have a statement that a park trainer was instrumental in assisting with the strike combat for the Indominus Rex. Ms. Dearing, would you know the identity of that personnel?"

"Yes…that would be Owen Grady."

"He's a trainer for…"

"Velociraptors."

"Yes, we want you to recruit him to be the head of the safety engineering."

Claire gulped at the request, not wanting to divulge that she had fired him not two days ago. "But…he's just a trainer. He is under-qualified for the position…"

"Yes, but we are very impressed with the reports we've received regarding Mr. Grady, and that position would require less of qualification, and more of hands-on experience and familiarity."

"It's just that…"

"Yes, Ms. Dearing?"

"He's been let go of the position…"

"Pardon?"

"I've fired him."

The gentleman looked upon her with surprise and curiosity, "And why did you fire him, if I may ask?"

"It was…it was…"

"Please speak up, Ms. Dearing."

"It was…personnel reduction." That was the best she could come up with, being pressed at the moment and with the inability to come up with anything less than a lie.

"Is he still in the park premise?"

"I believe so…"

"Well, Ms. Dearing, this is one personnel change you are absolutely warranted to rescind. We expect Mr. Grady to start his position as soon as possible."

. . . . . . . . . .

"Can't believe this is happening…"

Claire gritted her teeth as she pulled her car into the velociraptor training grounds, and hastily looked around the surroundings of empty cages and few dispersed workers. Not only she had to hire Owen back, but it was tasked upon her to do it herself. And after getting into few heated arguments with him, the last thing she wanted to do was face him that day, and to heed to his whim and grovel if needed to get the task accomplished. It wouldn't surprise her one bit if Owen made her beg him to come back.

She spotted Barry by the feeding barracks and quickly made her way toward him, "Hey, Barry…where's Owen?"

He shot her a suspicious glare, and she knew immediately that Owen had told him that she fired him. "He's out in the field."

"I need to talk to him."

"He's busy, Claire."

"Come on, Barry…" She had no patience for his dogged protectiveness over his buddy, "Where is he?"

"The last he checked in, he was by gate 25." He handed her a walkie-talkie, "You can call him if you'd like."

"Thanks…"

Claire grabbed the walkie, and pressed on the speaker knob, "Owen…Owen…where are you?"

" _Claire…what the hell do you want?"_

"I need to see you."

" _Boy, you sure do need to see me a lot after you fired me. Is this some kind of post-employee wellness therapy?"_

"Owen, I need to talk to you."

" _What is it?"_

"I'd rather talk to you in person."

" _Of course, you do."_

"Owen, I'm serious…"

" _You must seriously miss me…"_

Barry snickered at her side, and Claire bit her tongue to calm her peaked nerves, "Owen, I'm driving over to where you are…"

" _Can this wait? I'm busy…"_

"No, I need to talk to you now."

" _Jesus Christ…"_

"Give me your location."

" _I'm at gate 25, at the end of Parnell Road."_

. . . . . . . . .

"Damn it…where the hell are you?"

Owen was nowhere to be found by the gate 25, and most definitely not on Parnell Road as she drove upon the gorge for the second time. If he had lied to her for some insipid laugh…he had clearly underestimated her wrath and had no idea what cruel justice was waiting for him. She cursed under her breath again, feeling exasperated at him and at the possibility that this was a huge waste of her time. She pursed her lips in the vision of her smacking his face when she drove onto the shallow hill.

"What the…"

It was there that she saw his truck in the field, and the man himself standing in front of it. Owen was standing with his back to her truck, and something about his rigid stance struck her as odd. "What the hell is he doing…"

She parked her car behind his truck and honked at him, but he didn't budge. She honked again, and as before, he didn't move a muscle. Mystified and annoyed, she honked for the third time, and this time longer than the previous, but he remained still as if entranced.

"Owen! What the hell are you doing?" She rolled down her window and yelled out, and no longer feeling patient to wait for his response, she got out of the car and slammed the door shut with an angry huff. "Owen! What is the matter with you?"

And as she made her way hastily toward him, it was then that she saw why Owen had not moved a muscle. Standing in front of him…was Blue, and Owen was holding out his hand toward her. "Blue…hey…hey…look at me…easy…"

Claire stopped dead on her tracks and felt all of her energy drained from her body. Owen didn't look at her, but shifted his head ever so slightly to signal to her, "Claire, I need you to slowly walk back to your car. _Slowly_ _…_ "

She nodded as if to acknowledge his order, and without another word, she took a step backwards. But as soon as she moved, Blue hissed and curled her claws toward Claire. Owen immediately called out, "On second thought, _don_ _'_ _t_ _move_ …don't move a muscle."

"OK…" Claire froze in her stance, and dared to look at Blue and her darting blood red eyes. "Owen…what are we going to do?"

"You sure picked a great time, Claire."

"Owen…"

But he focused back onto Blue, who looked to be ready to dash, "Hey…easy…you're not going anywhere, I'm not doing this with you again…" Then he turned toward Claire, "There's a tranquilizer rifle in the front seat of my truck. I need you to grab it…"

"Owen…"

"You can do it, Claire…I'll keep Blue occupied. Just move very slowly…"

With a wary eye kept on the raptor, Claire took a tentative step closer to his truck, and upon spotting the tranquilizer rifle, she grabbed it through the window slowly and carefully. "Owen…I have it."

"Good…now walk toward me, and hand it to me…slowly…"

"Owen…" Claire saw that the raptor was fixated upon her movements, and her feet felt like lead upon the bottom of the ocean. "I can't…"

"What do you mean _you_ _can_ _'_ _t_?"

"I can't move…"

"Yes, you can…Claire, I _need_ that gun."

But she had a better idea, and perhaps the only idea she was willing to go along. She hoisted the rifle to her chest, and brought the barrel pointed at the raptor. "I'm going to shoot her myself."

"You _what_?"

"I'm going to shoot her myself."

"What the hell…have you ever shot a gun before?"

"No…"

"Claire…this is a _very_ bad idea…"

"It's close range…I could make it…"

"It's not as easy as you think…damn it."

She focused her eyes through the scope, "I could do it…"

Owen glared at her, "There are five tranquilizer shots in there, she needs three to get knocked out. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Point to her lower body where you have most mass."

"Alright…"

"And don't shoot me."

"Don't tempt me." Then with the raptor clear in her viewpoint and her feet firmly planted on the ground, Claire pulled on the trigger and fired a shot. It missed her.

"Shit, Claire…what the hell…"

She ignored Owen, and without missing a beat, she pulled on the trigger. And the shot missed her again. "Damn…"

"Claire…this is it…you have three shots left, and Blue needs all of them…"

"I know…"

With her eyes locked with the raptor, Claire fired the gun, and this time it shot the predator before her. Upon impact, the raptor recoiled in shock, and hissed loudly and ominously toward Claire, but Owen stepped in front of her, "Blue…hey…it's alright…it ain't gonna hurt ya…easy…"

Then Claire fired again, and made the shot. Blue fell a slight with the second shot to her body, and already her feet were struggling with the hazing effects of the tranquilizer. But the raptor fought hard against the drug, and clawed upward to keep standing erect. Owen turned to Claire, "She needs that third shot…you better make it…"

And with determination, Claire pulled the trigger. But with a gasp of horror, she had missed the shot, just as Blue took a stumbling step toward Owen.

. . . . . . . . . . .


	3. Chapter 3

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 3**

"Oh, my god…Owen…"

"Step back…step back…"

Owen pushed Claire back, with his arms spread wide to shield her from Blue, who roared in an angry hiss as she took a stumbling steps toward them. After two shots of tranquilizers into her belly, the raptor was both confused and afflicted, and she stretched her sharp claws as if to fend off the hazy drowsiness that seemed to tease and torment her.

"Give me the rifle." Owen demanded of Claire, and she promptly placed it in his hand without protest.

"It's empty." She shrilled behind him, clutching onto his shoulders just as he clipped apart the magazine cap.

"Yup."

"What are you going to do?"

"There's only one thing to do…I'm gonna have to knock her out."

"What?"

"She's about seventy percent drugged out…I'm gonna have to knock the crap out of the thirty percent."

"Are you…are you out of your mind? This isn't some bar brawl with a fat middle-aged drunk!"

"Well, Claire…this is what happens when you get stubborn and insist on doing everything yourself. It was a _very_ bad idea…"

"Now is not the time to gloat…"

"What can I say… _I told you so_."

"That's mature… _real_ mature…"

He chuckled, and even had the nerve to turn his face from the raptor to wink at her in the most devilish taunt. She stood there and stared at him with her mouth open agape, at his audacious posture that seemed to place the very alive and very dangerous raptor at a second position to the opportunity to relish in her failings. "Can we…can we just focus on the task at hand?"

"Ah, yes…the task. The task of containing the asset…the task of preserving the investment…or whatever the bullshit corporate lingo."

"Owen…"

"Alright, Claire…I need you to walk back to your car _slowly_ and get in, and don't you dare come out unless I tell you to."

"You're not serious about knocking her out…"

"Go, Claire…"

"She is not going to like that…"

"Oh, she will be pissed after I'm done with her. Now, go…"

Claire held onto his shoulders for a moment longer, feeling the muscles tense and taut under her fingers, and she knew his assessment of the situation was more grave than he was letting on. And after a slight squeeze, she took a tentative step back, keeping her wary eye on Blue who was seething in disoriented agitation. The raptor growled at Claire, revealing all of her spiked teeth in all of its savage and deathly glory. Claire stood frozen, but Owen goaded her to go on as he stood in front of Blue, "Hey…Blue…look at me…look at me…"

The raptor hissed at Owen, but he didn't flinch and held his ground until Claire reached her car. And as soon as she shut the car door, Owen flipped the tranquilizer rifle and held the stock of the gun toward Blue's face. He was getting ready to hit her with it.

"Oh…my…god…" Claire couldn't help but to gasp with her hands over her mouth, having none of the energy to breath at the sight of a man before an angry raptor, who had just proved her superiority by flashing her splintery teeth at him. The raptor must've sensed Owen's offense posture and she countered with a cry of attack, but she couldn't fight off the haziness of her senses and she stumbled toward him. But even that stumble of a disoriented raptor was too strong for Owen, as one of her razor sharp claws missed his neck merely in inches.

Owen ducked from Blue's other claw aiming for his head, and recovered quickly back to his firm stance on the ground. Blue had barely a time to regain her balance when Owen stepped forward to take advantage of her weakened footing.

 _Thwack_!

In that split second, Owen swung the rifle squarely to the raptor's face, and the stock of the gun came crashing onto the side of her mouth with the most horrific sound Claire had ever heard. Blue cried savagely, writhing in both pain and rage, but she had no chance to retaliate as Owen took another big swing at her face. _Thwack_!

And this time, Blue fell backwards, as her already shaky legs collapsed in shock of the impact, and her eyes drooped downward from sedation taking effect. She let out another cry, but it sounded different than the previous ones. It was now a muffled cry of relegation, of pain and confusion…of hurt and need. Owen must've sensed it as well, but he looked undeterred. He stood over Blue's face, and with quivering eyes he swung the rifle at her face for the third time. _Thwack_!

Claire couldn't bear to watch him hit the raptor's limp face, and as she fought back the tears welling in her eyes, she jumped out of the car. "Stop it! That's enough…"

At the sight of her running toward them, Owen instantly put up his hand to her direction, "Claire, get back into the car!"

"Owen…stop it…"

He took two bounding steps toward her, before she reached the still raptor on the ground, "I said, get back into the car…"

"Is she dead?"

"No…" Owen growled between his gritted teeth, "She's knocked out. Now go and stay in the car until I tell you to come out. Got that?"

"Owen…"

"Damn it, Claire…you're choosing the wrong time to be a pain in the ass."

She glared into his eyes, wanting to put up a fight, but the lines on his face were tense and his eyes were searing with anger and rigid determination. She wasn't going to win this one, not by a long shot. "We'll talk about this later…"

And as Claire walked back to the car and slammed shut the door, she saw that he had retrieved a coil of rope from his truck, and was looping it securely around Blue's closed mouth. He tied the rope at the base of her mouth, and then proceeded to tie together her clawed arms as well. When he was done, he pulled out a walkie-talkie from his belt holster and presumably called for back-up.

Claire was tempted to get out of the car, as his absolute orders for her banishment in the car felt overly protective and controlling, and the more she thought about it, her heart flushed in protest. The raptor was clearly subdued…so why was she stuck in the car like some hapless impounded dog? She tapped on the car door handle, grappling with the temptation of opening it, when Owen appeared at the side of the car and plopped down onto the passenger seat.

"Don't even think about it." He muttered as soon as he shut the car door.

"What?"

"I called Barry for transport, he'll be here in ten minutes. You're to stay in the car until we get Blue locked in the truck."

"Don't you think you're overreacting? Clearly, she poses no harm now…"

"Claire, look at me…" Owen's tone changed abruptly, and Claire shivered in alarm at his darkened eyes, "Don't you think for one second that the animal lying out there is safe, even if a ten-foot pole had pierced through her heart…but _even_ then, you wait until I confirm that she is dead. You never let your guard down, and never turn your back on her… _never_."

"OK…"

"The tranquilizers are keeping her under, but I have no way of measuring when the effects will wear off. And those ropes…they just buy me time, if I'm lucky. She'll rip right through them if she regains her strength."

"I thought you had killed her…"

"I had to do what was necessary…" Owen sighed in relief, with a tinge of regret, "The tranquilizers put her in survival mode, which basically means she's going to attack until her predator is killed. And the raptors are smart animals…she will remember our confrontation, or at least that my face would register as an aggressor."

"So…what now?"

"Start over, I guess…rebuild the relationship and the trust…get her back into her habitat, and even putting her back into the paddock is a semblance of home, where she belongs. Blue has been out here for the past three days alone…she tasted what freedom is like, how it feels to roam free out of the cage. But that's not enough…velociraptors are pack animals, they need to belong and they need to communicate. They thrive in their base instincts when they are in a pack."

"And when they're alone?"

"They revert to pure animalistic nature…surviving by domination and aggression."

Claire stared at Blue and her still lying form, and her heart thudded with a heavy pang of sorrow, "But…she is alone. The other raptors are…"

"She has me. I'm her pack, for now."

Perhaps Owen wanted to be spared of the somber reminder that all the other raptors had died, or that he couldn't bear to discuss it, not at that moment after what he had just gone through with Blue. But it was a discussion well warranted, for later time, and Claire tempered with changing the subject, "She is…a beautiful animal. Just an amazing work of art by nature…"

"Yes, she is…beautiful and complex…resilient…mysterious…surprising…"

"And so real…"

"Yup…and she actually prefers to live outside of your spreadsheets."

"A what?"

"And she's a bit haughty, because she knows she's a very expensive asset."

"Owen…" He chuckled lightly as he teased her, and she couldn't help but to laugh herself, "And may I point out that you've just depreciated her value by half with those mean licks to her face."

"You can just bill me…or dock my pay, whichever is easier for corporate accounting. Oh, wait, never mind…I've been fired…"

"Oh, about that…"

"They're here."

Owen pointed to a band of three large trucks that appeared in their view along the road, and he immediately got out of the car to wave at them. The trucks came to a halt next to Owen's truck, and Claire saw that Barry was the driver of the vehicle that had an attached metal cage at its rear.

Claire sat in her car, marveling at the sight of four men required to pick up Blue, and they still struggled with her massive weight. They managed to place her in the metal cage, and Owen cut off the rope off of her mouth and arms before Barry locked her in securely. Then Owen stood by her, looking over her still body, and he extended his hand through the bars and gently stroked the raptor's head.

Claire was struck with his tenderness toward Blue, and realized that their relationship was indeed real and tangible, and that she could not presume the depth of pain that he was going through in the aftermath of his raptors, all of whom he had loved and protected. Owen was part of their pack, part of the family, and he can pretend to valiantly accept that three raptors had died, but Claire knew it was breaking him apart. Owen had lost where he belonged to, and now Blue was all he had to feel needed and wanted…and accepted.

She got out of the car and carefully walked toward Owen by the cage, and she held onto his arm as she stood quietly next to him. She watched him stroke the raptor's head with not a word between them, as if in that silence they shared the sorrow over what had happened to Blue, and perhaps the loneliness that was awaiting for her. Claire shifted her eyes to Owen, feeling bashful as she studied his face and his eyes that blurred wistfully toward the raptor. Claire was starting to understand Owen, and the man whom she thought she knew was starkly different than how she saw him now. The man standing before her was just as he had described Blue…he was complex, resilient, mysterious, surprising, and…beautiful.

In her still revelry, she hadn't noticed that Owen had now turned toward her, with his eyes locked with hers in search of her faraway thoughts. She breathed in haltingly under his soft gaze upon her, and she dared to heed attention to the wave of nervous intensity that rattled her own heart. She was keenly aware of their close proximity, and her knees buckled at his unwavering eyes that seemed to reflect her very own…of fearful desire and the uncertainty of letting go. She had thought he'd break first and look away, but he held his gaze steady and undaunted, and his dark blue eyes held quiet resolve and a glint of recklessness.

"Is she going to be OK?" Claire broke first and hastily shifted her eyes toward the raptor, even dropping her hand from his arm.

"Yeah…we gave her another shot of tranquilizers, so she's taking a nice nap until we get her back to the compound. She might get a nasty headache when she wakes up, though."

"Really? They get headaches?"

"Yes, and it disrupts their sleeping…so they get super grumpy in the morning and fumble through their work all day, so we just load them up on coffee…"

"Haha…funny."

Owen let out a small laughter, "No…dinosaurs don't get headaches…"

Then Barry appeared at their side, joining them in watching Blue sleeping, and he turned to Claire, "So, you saw the man in action, huh? The man against the wild?"

"Excuse me?"

"You know…Mr. Regular Bad Ass, right here."

"Shut up, Barry." Owen chided his friend, but they shared a hearty laughter.

"Man…what I wouldn't give to watch that show…" Barry smiled broadly at Owen, "The lone man in a fist fight with a velociraptor. The balls of that guy…"

"She had no chance…"

"No, absolutely not…I'll make sure to spread the word around, it might help you with the ladies."

"Yeah, you do that."

"Because, you know…you need all the help you can get."

"Woah, what a way to call me out, man."

They shared another row of laughter, then Barry pulled out several keys from his pocket, "We're ready to head back. See you at the compound?"

"Yup, I'll be there to see her wake up."

And as soon as Barry drove off with Blue in tow, with the rest of the trucks following, Claire found herself standing with Owen alone again in the field. He turned to her with weary curiosity, "So…what is it that you wanted to talk about?"

"Umm…Owen…it's just that…" But at that moment, her cellphone went off in her pocket, and as soon as she fished it out and read that it was Lowery calling, she bit her lip, "Sorry…I have to get this."

Owen merely nodded as Claire brought the phone to her ear, "Lowery?"

" _Claire, we have the location of T-Rex."_

"What?"

" _We have the location of…"_

"I'll be there in five."

She hung up on him instantly, and faced Owen, "We found T-Rex."

"Where is she?"

"I don't know…I'm heading to the control room right now."

"OK…I'll be there in twenty."

. . . . . . . . .

"Ah…your boyfriend is here, the local hero…"

"Shut up, Lowery."

Claire snapped at Lowery, just as Owen stepped out of the elevator and walked over to them in large bounding steps, with every bit of his countenance determined and focused. The sight of him brought a deep sigh of relief to Claire, as it had been just Lowery and herself in that dim control room, trying to figure out just what the hell they should do with the T-Rex running loose and unpredictable in the park.

"Where is she?" Owen barked as he posited himself next to Claire, and followed her gaze up onto the large screen before them, lit with blinking signals of park activities.

"Well, hello to you, too." Lowery quipped from his seat with a grin, but Owen ignored him.

"She's by the east gate…" Claire wasted no time, and pointed at the red light at the edge of the park by the ocean, "She disappeared off the radar for the last two days, and now she's about twelve miles from her paddock…"

"Her tracker is malfunctioning…it must've been disabled during the fight with the Indominus Rex."

"But…what is she doing by the ocean?"

Lowery raised his hand as to respond, "I'd like to suggest that she's feeling like taking a dip, but I know you guys would just ignore me."

And Owen did ignore him, "Where are all the other dinosaurs?"

"They've been cordoned off and locked in various holding compounds, mostly against the south wall over there." Claire pointed at the green lit blocks, "We have almost all of the animals accounted."

"Are there any personnel around? Anywhere in that entire area?"

Lowery typed on his keyboard, and several blue dots appeared on the screen, "Just some maintenance crew…"

"Claire, I need every one of the crew and personnel evacuated, out of the entire park."

"What…that's impossible…"

"Damn it, Claire, get that done… _now_."

"Owen…"

"Don't you see…T-Rex, she's hungry. She's a carnivore, and she's looking for food. She hasn't eaten for the past two days…and with all the other animals locked up, her best bet is some fish she could scrounge around in the ocean. And we all know, that's _nowhere_ near enough."

"Oh, my god…"

"And if there're any people out there, you betcha she's gonna sniff them out and call them dinner."

Claire grabbed the microphone by Lowery's desk, and spoke into it with desperate urgency, "This is code red, all personnel to evacuate all premises immediately. I repeat, this is an active code red, all personnel and crew to evacuate all premises immediately."

Then they watched and waited for all the blinking blue lights to converge at the park exit points, and after nearly ten minutes, the park grid was wiped clean of blue lights. Claire then turned to Owen, "I'm calling in the containment unit, land and air."

"And then what? Tranquilize the shit out of it?"

Lowery snickered behind Owen, but Claire merely rolled her eyes, "We have no other choice, we need her back in her paddock."

"So, what are you gonna do with a nine-ton animal, knocked out in the middle of the park? Good luck with that transport…"

"Mr. Grady…do you have any bright ideas of your own?"

Owen grinned and shook his head at being addressed by his formal name, "She's hungry, she needs food. And she will only respond to food."

"What are you saying…"

"How much do you feed her per day?"

"On average, about six full-grown goats a day."

"Wow…that's a lot of calories…and can you imagine the size of her _shit_?" Lowery muttered under his breath, but cowered under Claire's irritated glare, "Geez…sorry…"

"Claire…" Owen demanded of her focus, "How far is the distance to her paddock?"

"About twelve miles."

"Here's what you need to do…get those goats out here, because we're going to feed T-Rex."

"Leave them in trails toward her paddock…"

"Yup, you've gotta give her the only thing she desperately wants. T-Rex can sniff out food within a mile radius, and that should give us plenty of time to deposit her food at trail points, straight to her paddock."

Claire crossed her arms with her eyes fixed on the blinking red light at the edge of the park, "Will it work? It sounds too easy, like leaving bread crumbs for children to follow…"

"It's helluva lot better idea than some containment unit going in there hollerin' and with guns ablazin'. You don't want to agitate a T-Rex, especially a very hungry one…and you definitely don't need another headline in the news." Owen studied over Claire's face, "Her basic need is food…that's our only option."

"OK…fine." She faced him squarely, "I'll call in the order for the goats…and let's draw up a plan with the park ranger."

"Good…and well, good luck."

"What?"

"Claire…do I need to remind you? You fired me…and now that Blue is caught, I guess I'm off to go pack my things."

"You fired your own _boyfriend_?" Lowery proclaimed in an animated shock and looked up at Claire with widened eyes, "That's cold…real cold…."

"Owen…" Claire threw him a warning glare, finding none of this amusing.

"Well, have a good life, Claire." He nodded to her, then slapped Lowery on his back, "Take care, man."

"Bye, Owen…and nope, that wasn't awkward at all…" Lowery was just as confused as he waved at Owen, watching him get into the elevator without another look.

"Damn it…" It took Claire a few seconds to realize that she had to go after him, and she rushed toward the elevator.

. . . . . . . . . . .

"Owen! Wait…"

She spotted him walking toward his truck at the entrance of now deserted park, and she was certain he could hear her, but he didn't break his stride. "He _would_ make this difficult…"

Claire had finally caught up to him as he stood in front of the car door, and he was about to grab the door handle when she pushed her hand upon it, "Owen…"

"What the hell…"

"I need to tell you something…"

"Is this part of the employee farewell package? Some pep talk about how much the corporation appreciates my contribution to some bullshit company growth?"

"No…Owen…"

"What is it…"

"You can't leave the park…"

"What?"

Claire breathed in deeply to compose herself, "I was invited to the board of directors meeting yesterday…and…"

"And…?"

"They asked me to take up a new position…an executive director of operations, in charge of rebuilding the park. Without Masrani…and with Wu gone missing…they asked me to be the chief overseer of the park."

"Woah…that sounds like a hefty promotion."

"In a way, it is."

Owen threw his head back and laughed into the air, and Claire could only watch in wary anxiety at what wicked thoughts were coursing through in his mind. "That's great…congratulations…"

"Owen…"

"Who would've thought that an utter disaster of a catastrophe was a way to climb up the corporate ladder. That's great, Claire…and here you thought they'd slap you with lawsuits and use you as a poster child for everything that went wrong. But no, what they really wanted to do was to put you up on the pedestal…and you're just gonna get sucked in deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole."

"That's not fair, Owen…I love this park just as much as you do…and I learned that from you."

He paused in his study of her face, then he threw her a careless smirk, "I'm tempted to believe you, but it doesn't matter how I feel about it. The park's all yours, Claire."

"Owen, I can't do this by myself."

"No…you have trusty Lowery, and a whole bunch of suits behind you."

She clenched her jaw and breathed in deeply, trying to maintain a collected countenance no matter how much Owen resisted her, "The thing is…these bunch of suits are interested in offering you a position."

"They, what?"

"They want to hire you to be the head of safety engineering."

"You've gotta be kidding me…" He shook his head in disbelief, "Safety engineering? Just what the hell am I _engineering_?"

"It's just a general title…you'll be overlooking the safety practicality and logistics for every asset development and detail…"

"OK…in laymen's terms?"

"You're making sure the park is safe, for people and for the animals."

"Why me?"

"They have read the reports of your involvement during the Indominus Rex incident…and for this position, they want someone who they can trust, someone with integrity and ethics, someone who'd protect and preserve the park. They seemed to have found that person in you."

"Really…"

"Yes…and I agree with them."

Owen's scrutinizing squint had now a sliver of appeasement, as a slight curl of his lips at the corner threatened to become a full-blown smug of a grin, "So, let me get this straight. You fired me…but now, you want me back."

"You can look at it like that…yes…"

"I can look at it as you need to do plenty of groveling if you want me back."

"Owen, we can be two mature adults…"

"I will _certainly_ not be a mature adult in this situation…I'm milking it as much as I can…"

"Owen…"

He let out an easy laughter, "Alright…if you want me back, I'm going to require some stipulations."

"Stipulations?"

"Yup…non-negotiable and non-retractable."

Claire didn't like the glint of sharp cunning that just flashed across his eyes, but she had no choice but to give in to him, "I'm listening…"

"First of all, I pick my own team, and I'm not accepting none of those suit types required from the corporate office."

"Fine."

"I'll never wear a suit, or attend a meeting that would require me to wear such a suit."

"OK…anything else?"

"Every development of dinosaurs has to be approved by me. Anything you decide to cook up in that lab, that has to go through me first, because whatever you bring into the park, that's a safety issue."

"OK…"

"And, I'd like to retain my position as a trainer."

"That was a given."

Owen smiled broadly at her, then took a step closer to her leaning against the car door, "There is one more requirement…"

"Which is?"

"You have to go on a second date with me."

"What?"

"A second date, Claire…that's all it takes, and I'm yours for the job."

"This isn't funny…"

"I never said it was."

Claire didn't know how to read that smug grin on his face…was he stringing her along for a laugh, or could she dare to think that he was being serious? "I don't know what you're up to, but if you think this is a time for a joke…"

"No…this is far from being a joke…"

"How about an additional compensation? The company is already offering you a hefty raise, but you can certainly request another twenty percent or so…"

"You already know I don't care for that nonsense…" His eyes softened toward her, and he was standing so close that she could detect his musky scent in the air, "A second date…how about it, Claire?"

"This is getting a bit silly, don't you think?"

"There's nothing silly about two people, who are _clearly_ attracted to each other, grab drinks together…it's called a date, and people have been doing that for centuries."

"Centuries? Really? Is that suppose to help your argument?"

"Claire, quit trying to stall time by arguing about every little damn thing. You're just delaying the inevitable…"

"Boy, aren't you just so confident…"

"Claire, I know you want me."

"The _company_ wants you."

He laughed into the air, but Claire didn't know what was funny, and this was getting very exasperating. "Claire…just a shot of tequila, that's all it takes."

"That's it? A shot of tequila? That's the date?"

"Yup…so what the hell are you afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid."

"Fine…so, what's it gonna be?"

. . . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thanks for reading this story! Thanks for the support!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 4**

"She is now about twelve miles from her paddock," Owen pointed up to the screen above them, with a stationary red blinking light by the edge of the park and a trail of green lights that signified the intended path leading to her paddock. "Every one of those green lights are trail check-points, planted every half a mile, so twenty-four in total."

Barry had joined the T-rex recovery mission, along with four park rangers, and they stood gathered in the dim control room, studying the park grid that was operated by Lowery from his monitor. Owen turned to the men, "There are six of us, so each of us are responsible for covering four stations. Here is the trail map, and on it you'll see the designated numbers assigned to you."

He handed each a piece of paper, "As you can see, Barry, you're the first leg, assigned to stations one, two, three, and four. Kip, you're the second leg. Then it's Murray, Stevie, and Diaz. And I'm the last leg leading into the paddock."

Owen waited until the men nodded in compliance, "In each of your trucks, we have placed four racks of meat, each weighing approximately thirty pounds. At your station, you'll find a tracking pole that looks like this. Lowery…"

"Coming right up, boss man."

Owen squinted at Lowery in veiled chagrin, but as soon as the screen displayed the graphics of the tracking pole, he turned his attention back onto the men, "As you can see, there is an attaching mechanism located at the bottom of the pole. You are to clip the rack of meat to that mechanism, but not just that, you are to pull on the red lever at the top."

"What does that do?" Barry asked, just as the graphics enlarged upon the red lever.

"What it does is…" Owen pointed at the screen, showing the top of the pole now blinking in bright flashing red light, "Not only that, it will also activate the low-frequency sonic system. T-rexes are highly visual creatures, with excellent hearing. We're certain that she will be able to sniff out the meat, but we're just doubling up on the insurance to stay on course."

"Technically, tripling up…" Lowery muttered under his breath, but sheepishly grinned under Claire's disaffected glare.

"Once these systems are triggered, you have ninety seconds to get the hell out of there…" Owen continued, "And if you can see T-rex, that means she can see you, too. So stay off her grid. We don't know what condition she is in, but if she's as hungry as we think she is, then she is a very dangerous animal. Your first and foremost concern is your safety, and your priority is to avoid playing the mouse to the world's most dangerous cat."

"Use your walkie, keep communication lines open and active. And I repeat, your safety is your _first_ priority. Abort operation immediately if you're on her path, or god forbid, if you're being chased. I can tell you, T-rex loves the chase and she never gives up."

"Any questions?" Owen looked at each of the men, then turned to Lowery, "You are to report her every movement, got that? Keep your eye on that tracker."

"Got it."

"Alright then, let's move." And with a firm nod, Owen started for the elevator when Claire stepped into his path.

"What about me?"

"What about you…?"

She stepped a bit closer to Owen, with a tight smile firmly planted with her rigid posture, "Where am I stationed?"

"You're already there, sweetheart." Owen snorted with a crooked grin, and Barry tried to muffle his snickering, but failed miserably.

"What do you mean _already_ _there_?"

Owen pointed to an empty chair next to Lowery, " _That_ _'_ _s_ your station. I did you a favor, you don't have to move a muscle."

"What..oh, no…" She protested, dismissing the few chuckles from the men and certainly their awkward glances, "I'm going out there with you…I'm in charge here, and I am _not_ going to just sit around and…"

"The only thing you're in charge of is that chair, and your ass on that chair."

"Ouch…" Lowery's meek voice broke through the hushed room, "That's gotta hurt…"

"Excuse me?" She was about two seconds away from ripping out his patronizing eyes, "Did you…did you just say my _ass_ …?"

"Umm, Owen?" It was Barry who spoke cautiously from behind Claire, "We'll head out first, man. We'll go check out the trucks…"

Owen merely nodded to him, and as soon as the men entered the elevator, he grabbed Claire's arm and pulled her away from Lowery's earshot, "Claire, I don't have time to deal with this right now…"

She freed her arm from his grasp and hissed into his face, "My _ass_ is going out there, and I don't ever need your permission or approval, both of which you can shove 'em up _your_ ass."

"The hell you're not leaving here, Claire."

"Watch me."

But Owen grabbed her arm just as she was ready to storm off, "I'm not having you out there, it's too dangerous."

"I can handle it…now, let go of me."

"Claire, will you just listen for once…" Not only Owen refused her order to let go, but now he had her waist firmly between his two hands, "Whether you can _handle_ it is…frankly, debatable…but I need you here to man the controls."

"You're leaving me here to be Lowery's assistant…"

"No, Claire…" He brought his hand to her face, and gently held her chin with his fingers, "I need you to be my eyes and ears. I'm putting my life in your hands, and I'm trusting you with that…"

"Owen…"

"Claire, please…I can't have this operation without having someone I trust in here."

"Thanks…thanks a lot…" Lowery waved his hand at Owen, "Oh, wait…sorry…forgot I wasn't suppose to be listening."

Owen didn't heed him attention and kept his eyes steadfast upon her, "Claire, can I count on you?"

It would've been easy for her to remain stubborn and insist on getting her way, as she had been accustomed to, according to her reputation, and anything less would cause a serious turmoil in her spectators' conclusions. But this situation presented a downright unfair distraction, that of Owen Grady standing a breath away from her, with his hand beholding her face, and his eyes…darkened with tease and ardor. Not that she could be easily swayed by such frivolous sensibilities, but much to her dismay, it was also becoming increasingly more difficult to retain that wall of discipline and control. "Fine…but I could've done without the ass comment."

"Sorry…can't help my idiot man brain, distracted by your…"

"Owen…"

"Alright, alright…from now on, only the utmost respect to your ass."

"Owen!"

He laughed heartily, "Just messin' with you, Claire…you're too easy."

"Is this…is this how you apologize? By pushing buttons, because it's _too_ _easy_?"

"OK, I'm sorry…" He then grabbed her chin, and he leaned toward her lips, whispering, "I do sincerely apologize…"

But her state of mind was nowhere he wanted it to be, and she pushed back on his chest, "What do you think you're doing?"

"I'm apologizing…"

"A kiss is not an apology…when will men ever learn that?"

But he leaned closer to her, despite her hand on his chest, "Fine…then a kiss for good luck?"

"If you need luck for the operation, then we're in trouble."

"How about…one for the road?"

"Owen, your men are waiting." Claire held her ground and sternly shook her head, denying him the last sliver of hope for a kiss.

"Gotta hand it to you, Claire, you know how to drive a man crazy."

"Yup, it's too easy."

He lips curled into a broad smile and his eyes crinkled in amusement, "I guess I deserved that…"

Then Owen turned toward the elevator, but before another step he faced Claire with a tender touch to her cheek, "I'll see you in an hour, if everything goes as according to plan."

"In an hour…"

"Be my eyes and ears…"

"OK. Be careful…don't do anything heroic."

"Well…you know me…" Then with his eyes locked with hers, Owen yelled over to the front of the control room, "Hey, Lowery, you listenin'?"

"Yup…"

"She is not to leave this room under any circumstances. I'm personally putting you in charge of that. Got it?"

"Got it!" Lowery raised his hand to give him a thumbs up, and after a last caress to her cheek and a warm smile, Owen prompted toward the elevator.

"Owen…" Claire called him to protest, but the face she saw as the elevator door closed on him was one of resolve and finite determination, as if there was no more discussion to be had regarding her location.

"Great…" She made her way next to Lowery, and focused upon the red blinking light, "Be a good girl, today…just eat your lunch and make your way home…"

"Can't keep up with you crazy kids…" Lowery blurted while busily typing, "So…you fired him, but hired him back…does that mean you guys are back together? And how does that work out with the boss and the employee situation?"

"Shut up, Lowery…"

"You should've kissed him, though…" He ventured hastily, "Just sayin'…it could be the last time you see him…you know, who knows what can happen out there…with him running around with a dinosaur and all…"

"Shut up, Lowery!"

. . . . . . . . . .

"Murray is good to go, he is off trail. Stevie is at station and ready." Lowery spoke into the mic, as Claire intently watched the red blinking light well on its way down the green lit trail, about half way to the paddock.

" _Location on T-rex_?" Owen's voice flickered through the intercom, and Claire winced at the unsteady frequency.

"She is at station twelve, happily chomping away. Half way mark, and on good pace."

" _Good, let_ _'_ _s keep it that way_."

Lowery looked at Claire with a disapproving smirk, as she had remained standing for the entire hour. "You can relax, Claire. She's eating…and the plan is actually working. Amazing…"

"I will relax when Gate Nine is closed, and with her behind it."

" _Control room_ _…_ _this is Stevie. I_ _'_ _m clear and off grid_."

"Good job, Stevie. T-rex is on trail and steady." Lowery eyed the red blinking light at station sixteen, "Diaz, Diaz, waiting for Diaz."

" _Diaz at station seventeen and ready."_

"That's a go-ahead…you're good to go."

" _Roger that."_

Lowery snickered behind Claire, "Do they still say, 'Roger that'? It always makes me laugh when I hear that…I don't know why…"

Claire didn't heed to any of Lowery's words, but kept her eyes firmly fixated upon the red blinking light, as it coursed past station sixteen and onto seventeen. So far, the pace had been steady and uneventful, but they were dealing with a nine-ton T-rex, and Claire had yet to breathe in suspense of creature's jaunt across the park. Claire eyed the two blinking yellow lights on the grid, one belonging to Diaz heading toward station nineteen. And the other yellow light belonged to Owen, awaiting for the T-rex at station twenty.

"Did you…did you see that?" Lowery exclaimed suddenly, pointing at the grid.

"What?"

"T-rex…she skipped right over station seventeen. She didn't eat…and she's moving fast…"

With a deathly focus, Claire fixed her eyes upon the red blinking light, and Lowery was right, T-rex had picked up speed. And as it headed towards station eighteen, she gasped as it ran right past it without eating. Claire looked at where Diaz was, and the T-rex was just a quarter of a mile away.

Claire snatched the mic from Lowery and screamed into it, "Diaz, Diaz, do you copy? Diaz?"

" _This is Diaz."_

"Abort mission, get off the trail. T-rex is right behind you. I repeat, abort mission and get off the trail."

" _Copy that, mission aborted. Going off grid."_

She watched as the blinking yellow light headed south, and sighed in a bit of relief when T-rex stayed on course on trail. But Claire cried out in panic when she saw that T-rex was headed straight toward Owen about a mile away.

"Owen…Owen…pick up your damn walkie!" She screamed into the mic, "Owen! Can you hear me?"

" _I can hear you, Claire. What the hell is going on?"_

"You need to get out of there, T-rex is right at your trail less than a mile away, and she is coming at you fast."

" _Where's Diaz?"_

"He's safe, he's off grid. You need to abort mission, now."

" _What happened with the T-rex?"_

"I don't know…she stopped eating and picked up speed. But I'm not having this discussion with you right now…get your _ass_ out of there, _now_!"

" _Did you just call attention to my ass?"_

"Owen!"

" _Over and out."_

"Owen…Owen? What the hell…" He had turned off the connection, and Claire can only watch the blinking yellow light in breathless anticipation. T-rex was now just a quarter of a mile away when the yellow light started to move…but he was moving along the trail. He did not go off grid, as she had ordered him to.

"That son of a bitch!" Claire cursed out loud and grabbed the mic again, when in an instant the red blinking light disappeared from the screen. "What the hell was that? What the hell just happened?"

"I don't know…" Lowery furiously worked on his monitor, "Her tracker is on…but…it looks like it's malfunctioning from where it's positioned…in her…"

"Oh, god…this cannot be happening…" It didn't help that Owen was staying doggedly on the trail, now being chased blind. She held the mic and screamed into it, "Owen! Owen…pick up the walkie, goddamn you…"

The yellow light was still moving, and it was now about half a mile from the paddock. But the intercom remained dead silent.

"Owen…Owen…pick up!" Claire couldn't breathe, "Owen…Owen…pick up the damn walkie…"

" _Claire…"_

"Owen, what the hell is going on?"

" _Not…now…"_

And the intercom went silent again.

"No…no…no…" Claire paced around the floor in panic, feeling utterly helpless and desperate…if something happened to Owen…and she'd be damned to stay there and just watch without doing something about it. And in the chaos of her feverish thoughts in full hysteria, she started toward the elevator, disregarding the glaring detail that she had no idea what she was doing, but hoping against hope that she'd figure something out by the time the elevator reached upstairs.

"Hey, where are you going?" Lowery called out to her, "Claire, get back here..."

"I'm going to go…help."

"Are you out of your mind?" Lowery ran and stood before the elevator, "What are you gonna do…scare up the T-rex? Stand in her way? Because that's gonna work out just great for you."

"Get out of the way, Lowery."

"Claire, I can't let you go…"

"Lowery…"

"Owen will kill me if I let you leave, and you know, I kinda appreciate not being killed."

"I can't just sit here and do nothing…I won't watch Owen…"

"Become a tasty dessert?"

"Lowery!"

"Geez…Owen was right, you _are_ too easy…"

Claire was getting ready to push Lowery aside when they heard the intercom beeping, and she ran to it without missing a beat. "Owen?"

" _Get ready to close Gate Nine."_

"What are you doing?"

" _Wait for my count…in five…"_

"Owen, what the hell are you doing?"

"He's inside…" Lowery pointed to the video cam streaming on the side screen, "He led her into the paddock…son of a bitch…"

Claire gasped in horror as she watched T-rex, and she had Owen cornered against the far wall of the paddock. He was thrusting one of the tracking poles with its bright flashing red light…he was holding her attention until the gate closed. Claire knew what he was about to do…and she didn't even have time to pray, as every option at this point seemed too late to consider.

" _Claire, close the gate."_

"Are you out of your mind?"

" _Claire, now! Or I'm a dead meat, literally."_

Lowery didn't wait for her signal as he pressed the button, and the gate lurched in motion. Claire muffled her scream with her hand over her mouth, as the gate started to close, and Owen was still waving the tracking pole at the T-rex. Then, just when it looked impossible and time had long gone to the losing side, Owen threw the tracking pole to the field yonder, and he dashed for the gate. And between the sliver of the closing gate, he slipped through and tumbled to the ground.

"That's some bad ass son of a bitch, right there…" Lowery muttered under his breath, as he leaned back in his chair and breathed out a loud sigh of relief.

"He has got to _stop_ doing that." Claire herself fell onto a near-by chair, feeling utterly spent and exhausted, with her heart still trembling in frenetic shock. And she had yet to decide whether Owen deserved a good smack to the face, or if she should just kiss the shit out of him.

" _Are you guys there?"_

"Yup…" Lowery answered him.

" _I'm on my way to the control room. See you in ten."_

 _. . . . . . . . . ._

"Owen…"

Claire spotted him standing with Barry, Stevie, and Kip by their trucks when she exited from the control tower, and at first sight, she ran to him and threw herself into him, holding him tight with both of her arms wrapped around his neck. She was fully aware that this very sudden and very public show of affection was unwarranted of her reputation and character, but at that moment, being carried by a wave of relief and release, her only defense was that she just couldn't help it. She could even gladly disregard the embarrassment, just as Barry feigned his cough in awkward bewilderment.

"Claire…I'm alright…" Barry wasn't the only one caught in the awkward as Owen tentatively placed his hand on her back to soothe her, "I'm alright…"

"Don't you ever pull a stunt like that again."

"Truth is, that's my signature move."

"I know…and that's a problem."

Claire released her arms from him, and found that the men had all but disappeared. "Where are Murray and Diaz?"

"They're back in the ranger tower…they're good and alive…and they have successfully transitioned back from being lunch meat to park rangers."

"That's not funny."

"The mission was a success, Claire. I'm allowed to have a little bit of fun, aren't I?"

"Success is a funny word to use here, as you ending up inside the paddock _with_ T-rex was _not_ part of the plan."

"Things change and plans change…you have to roll with the punches."

"I bet you jumped at the chance to get in there with T-rex, Mr. Alpha of all species."

Owen laughed in a roaring amusement, "Imagine being the alpha to that T-rex, that's some bad ass mother f-…"

"Owen…"

"I'm gonna choose to take whatever you said to me as a compliment, but she was about two miles away from the paddock…I had to do what was necessary, because I wasn't going to screw it up. We can't afford another day with her out on the loose."

"Well…that was incredibly reckless...and stupid."

"Don't dismiss the stupid…because sometimes that's what life throws at ya." Then Owen's lips curled into a smile, "But I'm touched that you were so worried about me…Claire, you _do_ care about me after all."

"Of course, I care…it'd be me cleaning up your limbs off the ground."

"Nah, she would've swallowed me up whole, me being such a fine lookin' tasty treat."

"More like a hotdog on a stick."

"Eh…still an irresistible treat, to any female blood such as yourself…"

"Who knew T-rex had such a stalwart self-control, seeing that she let an irresistible treat get away…"

"It's her loss…" His smile lingered on his face, but his tone suddenly changed, "We do need to have a conversation about her health. She stopped eating at station seventeen…that's barely half a day's worth. She didn't eat for three full days…she should be eating a lot more than that."

"Something is not right…"

"She's injured. And when she was chasing me, it wasn't because she was hungry."

"What should we do?"

"I don't know…it's not like we have a dinosaur veterinarian at our disposal."

"At the least, we need to get a sampling of her blood. But the lab had been shut down, and I have no idea when we will have enough equipment and manpower to open it up…"

"Well, we've gotta figure something out, because she is angry and agitated. And that's not safe for anyone in the park."

Claire was lost in thought when Owen leaned in to get her attention, "We are…we are still on for tonight, right?"

"What?"

"Our date…you didn't come here to pick a fight with me, so you could get out of our date, did you?"

"Oh, the date…" She didn't know why her cheeks just flushed in heat, and she squirmed in embarrassment, "No…I mean, yes…we're still on."

"Good…" Owen smiled broadly, "I'm gonna take care of Blue for the rest of the day…do you wanna come to the raptor paddock after work?"

"Yeah…sure."

"Great…then, I'll see you there."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

As Claire drove into the lot next to the raptor paddock, the place seemed nearly empty and deserted. She saw couple of maintenance crew by the feeding barracks, but there was no sign of Owen, or even Barry for that matter. She quickly glanced at the small clock on her car, and it was a bit after seven o'clock. Was she that late?

She parked the car, and then pulled down the windshield mirror to check her make-up and hair. After a full days of work, and especially after the adventures with T-rex earlier in the afternoon, her face looked absolutely ashen and ghastly. She quickly fished out a lip gloss from her bag, and swiped it across her lips. She also wiped the smudges of her melted eyeliner, and cursed at not being able to find a compact blush in her bag. Then she looked over her hair, and attempted to settle some fly-aways from her now frizzy hair. "Oh, what's the use…"

Indeed, it was no use, and Owen had to just accept her as she presented. Plus, this was Owen…and what did it matter what he thinks? This was going to be just a shot of tequila, as he had put it, and their so-called date will be over with. Nothing to be too concerned about, and she just had to get through it, all for the interests of the company…and that's that. And really, what it boiled down to was her acting on behalf of the company, and if this was a small sacrifice she must relegate to, then so be it.

But as she stepped out of the car, she couldn't explain why she felt compelled to ditch her blazer, and opted to show off her deep V-neck dress. Or if she had truly dared, she would even admit that in the morning, the date was all she could think about as she rummaged through her closet. Black was too dreary…red was too suggestive…white was too business-like…so she settled on deep green to off-set her red hair and accentuate her eyes. But, lest she forgets, this date was most definitely her sacrifice for work.

"Claire! Hey, Claire!"

She turned toward the sound of Owen calling her, and found him in the holding paddock, with Blue as its only resident. He was stroking Blue's head strapped onto the metal enclosure, and Claire felt timid in the presence of the animal, as if she was intruding upon a clandestine lovers' tryst.

"Hey, Claire…wow…you look great. And I'm underdressed…again."

"Why am I not surprised…"

"Yeah, you probably shouldn't have too high of an expectation for me, as far as the dress code goes."

"I'll let it slide this time."

"Are you insinuating that there will be a next time?" Owen turned to the raptor, "What do you think, Blue? Should I read into it or not?"

Claire simply smiled and stood next to Owen, and watched silently as he stroked Blue's face. It was still so surreal to behold of this creature so close, to see into the depth of her darting eyes, and even hear her breathe. And when Blue shook her body in the containment, Claire felt the ground jolt from the tremors rattling through the metal, and she gasped in wonder and in terror of the power and the strength of the raptor. It was just yesterday that Blue was the predator in the wild, but today, she looked almost tame and helpless under Owen's caressing hands. It didn't help that she was the lone occupant amongst the three empty containment enclosures.

"How is she?"

"She's been good…roamed around by herself today, feeling out her home again."

"She must know the three others are gone…"

"She's a smart girl…she knows what happened to them."

Claire couldn't help but to place her hand upon his arm and lean into his shoulder, as the loss was just as his and the grief must be just as deep. He cooed at the raptor under his breath, "You'll be fine, Blue, you'll be just fine. You're a survivor, and we have each other."

Then he turned to Claire, "Do you wanna touch with her? Wanna try it?"

"Oh…I don't know…"

"Come on, Claire…she's not lethal by touch." He then patted a flat spot upon Blue's head, "Right here…put your hand right here."

Claire was aware her hand was shaking as she extended it toward Blue's head, and with the last look into Owen's reassuring eyes, she laid her hand gently upon the raptor. Her skin felt cool to the touch first, but it became warm like heat was being generated from deep within. The surface was almost too smooth, but it was tough and resilient, and was unlike anything she had touched before. Blue shifted her head under Claire's touch, and she felt as though she could sense the core of the raptor's power underneath her fingers. "Hello, Blue…my name is Claire…and you are an amazing animal…"

"It's pretty wild, don't you think?"

"Yeah…"

Owen smiled with a certain boyish mischief, "You know…I told Blue about you…"

"Really…"

"I told her about our date tonight…and I told her she had every reason to be jealous of you."

"Did you also tell her that this was only a one-time deal?"

"I don't think we have agreed upon that yet…"

"And did you tell her that I'm more than willing to concede your affections to her?"

"Well, now, you should always put up a fair fight, Claire. I have a feeling you have a good chance of winning, though…"

Claire stroked Blue's head and spoke toward her, "Blue, he's all yours. You can have him and _keep_ him."

"Good night, Blue…" Owen stroked her head for the last time, "I'll tell you all about the date tomorrow…but you should start worrying, if I were you. You might be losing your alpha tonight…"

"Let's go, Owen."

They made their way out to the lot, and Claire fished for her car keys in her purse, "Alright, I'll meet you there."

"No, Claire…this is a date, you're riding with me." And Owen grabbed her arm and led her toward his Jeep parked under a tree.

Then they spotted Barry coming out of the far gate, "Hey, Owen…Claire…"

"See you tomorrow, man."

"See you, Owen…and umm…have a good night, you two."

Claire looked back at Barry, as she was certain she had just heard him laugh behind her. She turned to Owen sharply, "Do you tell Barry _everything_?"

"Not _everything_ …well, not quite… _almost_ everything…"

"Unbelievable…"

"Relax, Claire…it's a date and not some classified national security."

"Well, whatever that happens tonight, it's off limits…especially to Barry."

Owen laughed at her insistence, "And just what do you think will happen tonight?"

"Nothing…"

"Well, I guess then there would be nothing to tell."

"Owen, you know what I mean…"

"No, I don't know what you mean."

"Let's…let's just go…to our night of nothing."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"Why are there six glasses?"

"Because I ordered six rounds."

"I thought we're only drinking one glass…"

"Oh, Jesus…Claire…will you just relax?"

She looked down upon the six shot glasses lined up in rows before her, all filled with clear liquid to the brim. The waitress had also brought them a small bowl filled with cut lime wedges and a small container of salt. Owen eyed her with scrutiny, "Obviously, you have no idea what any of this is…"

"No…"

"OK, then, I'm gonna have to show you. First off, you start with the salt." He picked up the salt container, and poured some salt on the table. "You lick your hand…like this…and press onto the salt."

He licked just below his thumb, and then pushed it onto the salt on the table, and as he lifted his hand, Claire saw that some of the salt had remained on his hand. "Then you hold the lime in the same hand."

"This is how you drink your shot of tequila. Lick the salt off your hand, down your liquid venom, then bite into the lime and suck in the juice. Like this… _salud_ …" With a wicked grin, Owen licked the salt off of his hand, much to her faint disgust, then drank his shot in one gulp, and bit into the lime with gusto. He even let out a loud yelp at the end, with a healthy dosage of contentment.

"Ready to try it?"

"I guess…"

"Come on, let's drink together."

Then she followed Owen's movements, starting with the licking of her hand and dipping it onto the salt on the table, which she found to be quite unsanitary. She then held the lime in the same hand, and she picked up her shot glass with another hand.

"Salud…" Owen cheerfully clinked his glass into hers, and drank first, with the satisfied yelp at the end to conclude the motion.

Claire stared at her clear drink. This was it…and it wouldn't be that bad, right? Then, with determination and an ample of motivation to just getting it over with, she licked the salt off of her hand, and downed the drink in one gulp. Then she bit into the lime and inhaled in the juice.

"Aargggh…" She felt the wicked liquid course through her veins, with its sharp and stinging kick. Her throat burned like fire had scraped by, and it felt as though the liquid had flared up to her nose. Then it hit her head, then her stomach, with a punch of strong concoction alien to her body. She had never been a drinker, if at all, and this liquid brought a jolting shock to her senses.

"Congratulations, Claire, on your very first shot of tequila. First of many, I presume?"

"This…this burns my throat…and my nose…"

"You're not doing it right…" Owen leaned into her in midst of the loud music in the bar, "When you down the tequila, don't breathe in. Bite the lime, and then breathe. That should cut the burning from the liquor. Here, try another one…"

"Oh, no…"

"Claire, you've gotta do it properly to enjoy it."

"Owen, that was my one shot of tequila."

"Yeah, so?"

"That's it…our date is over."

"Oh, for cryin' out loud…" Owen leaned back into his chair and stared at her with a scowl, "Fine, Claire…if you wanna go, let's go. I'm a man of my word…one shot of tequila date, it is."

Owen didn't mask his disappointment, and as Claire sheepishly looked around the bar, she was willing to admit that being there with him was actually kind of nice. Owen didn't turn out to be a lout at the bar who drank too much and talked too much, and truthfully she was enjoying his company and the simple fact that they were alone together. And perhaps there was some cause to celebrate, as they were able to successfully bring T-rex back to her paddock. Plus, it was Friday night, after all…no harm done.

"Alright…maybe couple more shots won't hurt."

"That's my girl."

. . . . . . . . . .

Claire didn't know how it happened, but when she looked down upon the table, all of her shot glasses were empty, and not only that, it seemed like she had drank some of Owen's as well. She found Owen across the table with a stern look on his face, and she smiled at him…because she was happy…very, very, tingly happy. And the more she smiled at him, his face became fuzzy and definitely furry…as if he was turning into a giant teddy bear. "Hey…big bear…"

"Alright, I've gotta get you home…you're drunk."

"I am not drunk…"

"Claire, you drank all of your shots, plus three of mine. Sweetheart, you're drunk."

"If I'm drunk, would I do this?" She then got up from her chair, and never mind that suddenly she had no control over her legs, she made her wobbly way toward Owen. He watched in curious perplexity as she proceeded to plop down upon his lap, with her arm firmly draped across his shoulder, "Do you still think I'm drunk?"

"Yes…very…let's get you home, Claire." He attempted to get her back on her feet, but she protested with a loud groan.

"You're never fun, Owen…big, strong Owen…" Then she grabbed his cheek and brought his lips close to hers, "You're one handsome fella…"

"Maybe you're not that drunk after all." Owen muttered while shaking his head, "Come on, princess…time to go."

But she was intent on doing something entirely different, as she leaned into his lips and kissed him. Owen pushed away, "Woah, what are you doing?"

"I'm kissing you, silly…" And she leaned into his lips again, but he held her firmly against him.

"No…Claire…"

"Owen…don't you wanna kiss me…"

"I do…but not when you're drunk…"

"Then, why don't we do this…" Claire leaned into him and caressed the nape of his neck, then whispered into his ear with her lips teasingly grazing his ear lobe, "Why don't you take me to your…bungalow…and we can kiss there…"

"Claire…" Owen attempted to push her away, but his efforts were becoming less and less convincing. It didn't help that Claire had just left a trail of kisses on his neck, and he didn't protest to that.

"Owen…I'm yours for the night…"

"Claire…you're _very_ drunk…"

"I know you want me…"

"Claire…"

"What are you afraid of, big boy?"

. . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: I feel like I'm not writing Owen Grady, but Chris Pratt because I'm a big fan of his goofy humor. Ahh, whatever…this is FAN FICTION, so I hope you'll throw me some graces with it!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 5**

"Oh…my…god…"

Claire squinted her eyes at the harsh sliver of sunlight seeping through dingy grey curtains, never mind that she should give a damn about just to whom the curtains belonged to, but she was wholly consumed and distracted by the lightening of wicked pain that just coursed through her head. She cursed at the sunlight that casted its unconcerned lick upon her eyes, and every movement of her eyes brought another wave of fresh prick to her already throbbing head. She shifted her body, faintly aware that she was lying on a bed, and her legs felt as though melded together, weighing way more than they should and even a slightest of movement demanding way too much effort.

Then it hit her. The panic struck her with the dreaded realization that she was not in her apartment, and with a sharp intake of breath, her eyes darted around her, starting with the wooden ceiling and dark grey walls. There was something slyly familiar from the little that she could comprehend in her dullness, but nonetheless the blind panic propelled her to get up from whatever she was lying on and get the hell out of there.

And it was then that she felt the presence of a figure lying next to her, a soft mound of still form wedged against her left arm. With a ghastly startle she turned to it…and gasped at the sight of Owen sleeping on his stomach, softly snoring with his mouth open in deep slumber.

"Oh…my… _god_ …"

Not only Owen had the nerve to sleep next to her in bed, but his chest was bare without a shirt, and she could plainly see his boxers peeking out carelessly from his pants. She hastily looked away as his butt cheeks flashed from underneath the boxers as he shifted his legs, and he moaned in what she could only gather as from some lascivious dream. She glared at his face, which bore a dopey grin, and for reasons unknown and unexplainable, all she wanted to do was to shove a pillow to his face and possibly indulge him forever in that prurient reverie.

"Owen! Owen…get up…" Claire nudged him, but his snoring continued in its undeterred bliss, so she pushed him forcibly on his bare shoulder, finding the touch damp with sparse beads of sweat. "Oh, god…Owen…get up!"

She got up from the bed and bounded toward the window, and threw open the curtains wide to let in the full damage of the morning sunlight. Claire saw that Owen shifted his face in protest, and when he opened his eyes a squint to seek his tormentor, she jumped on him and pulled on his arm off the bed, "Get up, Owen…now…"

"Claire…what the hell…"

"Owen, what in the world happened last night?"

"Huh…"

"How did I end up…here…in your bed…?"

"Jesus Christ…" He glanced at the small alarm clock on the bedside table, and scowled at finding it was merely seven o'clock in the morning. "It is _way_ too early for this many words. And for the love of God, close the curtains…"

"And why are you not wearing a shirt?"

"Claire…you're killing me…"

"Owen…I swear…if you brought me here and…"

"And what?" He grimaced with a fatigued sneer, and grudgingly sat up on the bed, "Just what do you think happened here last night?"

"I don't know…why don't you tell me…?"

"Fine…I brought you here, and you ripped my shirt off, and we had wild sex all night."

"What?"

"You heard me…wild, wild sex, _all_ night…you couldn't get enough of me."

Owen started to laugh, but Claire stood with her hand over her mouth in ashen shock, "We, what?"

He was still laughing when he got up from the bed and stood before her, with his fingers roughly combing through his hair, "Just messin' with you, Claire. Believe me, if we had sex, you'd remember it."

"Owen…that is _not_ funny."

"You should've seen your face, though… _that_ was funny…"

"Owen, I'm being serious…you better tell me what happened here..."

"Jesus Christ…there's nothing to tell, because nothing happened…" He yawned lazily, and stretched out his bare chest, "You passed out in my car, and since I didn't know where you lived, I had no choice but our little sleepover…"

"I passed out…"

"That's what happens when you have nine shots of tequila…"

"I had _nine_ shots?"

"Yup…surprised you're not crouched over on the toilet and throwing up your entire stomach…"

"Nine shots…and you didn't think to stop me?"

He perched his hands on his waist, and shook his head, "Claire…did you ever tried to stop _yourself_? And how did that go?"

She rolled her eyes and huffed, "So…the only solution was to carry me to your bed…"

"That's the thanks I get, huh? My back almost gave out…"

"Owen…"

"Jesus…Claire, nothing happened…so just take it easy…"

"And not only that, you proceeded to sleep next to me…you could've slept on the couch."

"OK…honestly, that part, I don't remember too well…I must've just fell onto the bed. Like I said, you were quite heavy, and it must've knocked me out…"

"Owen…"

He laughed with a glint of tease, but he raised his hands as to feign surrender, "Look…I blacked out after I carried you to bed…I swear, I didn't even cop a feel…"

"Sure…and that would explain you without a shirt."

"I have no explanation for that…for all I know, you must've ripped it off of me in one of your many indecent dreams about me."

"Now, _that_ _'_ _s_ funny."

"Look, Claire…it's too early for any of this. And I'm tired as hell…can we go back to bed for at least one more hour of sleep?"

He took a step closer to her, and pinned her in as he rested his hand upon the wall, just a mere breath away from her shoulder. She had to admit his face looked awfully groggy, with the bags under his eyes taking prominent residence, in all of its puffy and shadowy glory. She herself wouldn't have minded an hour more of sleep, but getting back into the bed with him, after all the fuss she made, seemed almost ironic…but not that she'd consider getting into bed with him for lack of any sentiment.

"Claire, what do you say…can we not do this until both of us are less hung over?"

Owen languidly combed through his messy mop of hair again, and she could only blame him for commanding such a close proximity to her…as she was reduced to rest her eyes upon his bare chest, taking in its full and brawny mass, then she roamed over to his broad shoulders, just as the beads of sweat glistened in the seeping sunlight. She took in the full view of his abdomen, of the ripples of taut muscles, and her eyes travelled to his strong arms, hulking and robust in contrast to her slight and delicate frame. She would be lying if she couldn't admit that Owen Grady was indeed a handsome man…but the view of him without a shirt in that close proximity left her, quite simply, in short of breath.

"Claire, are you checking me out?"

Owen's abrupt words, along with his taunting smirk, felt like a bucket of cold water thrown to her face, sufficiently waking her up from the rather embarrassing reverie, "What?"

"You're checking me out…"

"What are you talking about?"

"You're checking out the merchandise…"

"I don't know what you're talking about." She maintained her rigid posture, or as best as she can, and pushed him aside, "I have to…umm…get out of here…"

"And where do you think you're going?"

"I have to…go to work."

"Claire, it's Saturday…"

"The dinosaurs don't take weekends off…"

"The park is closed…and the maintenance crew is taking care of them."

Her tone was prickly as she picked up her shoes off the floor, "I have to go…supervise the control room."

"You have to supervise…Lowery?"

"Yes…"

"Claire, stop…" Owen turned her around to face him, with his hands holding her shoulders, "Stop the panic…"

"Panic? Who's panicking? I'm not panicking…"

"Claire…slow down…you left your car at the raptors' paddock, remember?"

"I'll call a cab…"

"You're gonna call a cab…into the gated closed park…and onto the off-road bungalow without an address…"

Claire heaved a sigh of relegation, but kept her shoes clutched in her chest, "Well, put on a shirt, because you're gonna have to drive me."

"Look, here's what's gonna happen…" Owen kept his hands firm on her shoulders, "I'm gonna forgo that all of this is way too much drama before seven o'clock on a Saturday morning. I'm gonna go make some coffee and some breakfast…"

"I'm not hungry."

He rolled his eyes, "Just go with it, Claire. As I was saying, we're gonna have some coffee, relax a little, wake up a little more, and become more civilized. And then, I'll drive you…how about that?"

"Fine."

"Good…you know where the bathroom is, if you need it."

Claire very well remembered where the bathroom was, and she was appalled to find what nine shots of tequila looked like in the morning, with her first thought being an utter embarrassment that Owen had seen her in such a state. Her hair was a mess of knots, her black eyeliner had been all but completely smudged, and her cheeks had unsightly red blotches all over. She hastily splashed cold water onto her face, which actually felt really good, and combed her hair as best as she can manage with her fingers. Her green dress was horribly wrinkled, but it'd have to do, as an alternative to walking out there in her skivvies.

"Ah, see…don't you already feel better?" Owen smiled broadly as she walked out of the bathroom, and she saw that he was wearing a t-shirt. The small bungalow was filled with the sweet aroma of freshly brewed coffee, and he poured her a cup, setting it on the counter while pulling out a tiny stool, "Here…sit here and drink this coffee…and relax. Easy peasy…no worries…"

She smiled a little as she sat on the stool, and she took a careful sip of the steaming coffee, "Oh, that's good…"

"Cheers…" Owen winked at her as he took a gulp of the coffee, and Claire couldn't help but to smile at him, finding this quiet moment of the two enjoying coffee in the early morning unnervingly domestic. And she wasn't objecting to it…rather, it was nice…and it was at that precise moment that she looked over him and…wanted him.

"Claire…you alright?"

"Huh?" Once again, Owen caught her in another odd predicament of ardent fancy.

"You looked like you took a head trip somewhere…"

"No…no…I'm just enjoying the coffee…"

Owen grinned at her, but he was wholly distracted with cooking what looked to be a large batch of bacon. "You feelin' hungry?"

"I guess I could eat a little…"

"You definitely should put some food in your stomach, it'd help you to digest the alcohol from last night…" He then placed a large plate of grilled bacon on the counter before her, "Depending on how you look at it, you either hit the jackpot or went home empty…bacon is all I got to offer you."

"Bacon…that's all you've got? Nothing else but bacon?"

"Filling that little fridge with breakfast items isn't exactly a priority…plus, what's wrong with bacon? It's the breakfast of champions."

"Actually, bacon is not the breakfast of champions. It's not even considered a protein."

"Who eats bacon for the protein? You eat it for the fat."

"Precisely…"

"Don't tell me," Owen laughed as he shook his head in disbelief. "Your _diet_ doesn't allow bacon."

"Not just my diet…bacon is legitimately one item of food that's not allowed in _any_ diet."

"That's hogwash…" He scoffed as he chomped on a piece of bacon, with much gusto and relish, "Claire, if you can chug shots of tequila, then I'm sure you can make exceptions to your little diet… _if_ you wanted to. Why do you live in these ridiculous _guidelines_?"

Perhaps it was to spite him, or to prove to him that she wasn't the stuffy and uptight puritan that he made her out to be, but regardless she lunged at a piece of bacon, and scarfed it down with a dignified smirk firmly planted on her face. Owen watched her with an amused grin, and laughed heartily at the grease dripping at the corner of her mouth.

They sat together in silence for a moment, blissfully indulging in coffee and bacon, when Owen broke in cautiously, "I guess this is a good a time as any…"

"For what?"

"Don't you think we should talk about…it?"

"Talk about what?"

He eyed her carefully, as if he was still unsure of the reception, "Our first date…"

"What's there to talk about? It was a total mess…"

"Right…right…you don't have to remind me about my board shorts. To my defense, it _was_ very hot that day, and I'm not the one to think about what clothes I'm wearing. But, in hindsight, I should've dressed better for the occasion…no doubt."

"Owen…that date…should've never happened. It was a bad idea…"

"You think so, huh?" Owen's voice cracked a slight, and his rigid smile didn't fool Claire, as it was evident that he didn't expect, nor appreciate, her rather terse conclusion. But what can he possibly be thinking when the date was indeed…a total disaster…and that it was understood by both parties that it absolutely did not warrant a second date? Or so she had assumed…

"Owen, we argued the whole night, we barely stayed long enough to finish our dinner…you couldn't wait to drive me back home."

"We just got off on the wrong foot…"

"You threw my itinerary out the window."

"I have to admit…that was pretty funny." He chuckled at the memory, but Claire found none of it amusing, as he had no idea how many hours she spent to research and double check on the date itinerary, how she had meticulously taken into consideration the dynamics of the first date and how that affected their night…but perhaps Owen was right. The more she thought about it, she felt utterly ridiculous.

"Fine…maybe the itinerary wasn't the best of ideas…"

"Claire…just admit it…you hated me the minute you got into my car, and you shut down our date before even giving it a chance. And it wasn't the board shorts, so don't bring that up again."

"I didn't _hate_ you…"

He snorted in concession, "Claire, every time you looked at me, you crinkled you nose like you couldn't stand the sight of me."

"No…it wasn't like that…"

"The problem was…you thought you were better than me." He leaned closer to her, "You probably agreed to the date because you were attracted to me…but as soon as you realized that I'm more than the handsome face, that I actually had a thought of my own…and ridiculed you on that itinerary thing…you weren't gonna have it. You were probably annoyed like shit because you couldn't control me."

" _Excuse_ me…" Claire pulled back in growing indignation, "Are you about done with your self-flattery? Because, first of all…I didn't agree to the date because I was _attracted_ to you…"

"Really…then why _did_ you agree to it?"

"Because…well…as you know, there aren't that many single men at my age around here…and you happen to be one of the very few…"

"You've gotta be kidding me…" Owen laughed heartily into the air, "You went out on a date with me…because I happen to be a single man at your age. That's a load of crap…"

"Obviously, you have everything figured out already…I mean, how does _anyone_ have a conversation with you?"

"Let's just say, I have a keen sense of sniffing out the bullshit…it's a gift, definitely not a curse." Owen smiled with a sly wink, "And I also know you were attracted to me from the first moment we met…"

"Are you aware that self-flattery is your curse?"

"…and you liked the fact that I had the balls to ask you out, seeing that you're my _boss_."

"Well, aren't we just full of ourselves…"

Owen chuckled with satisfaction, and took a healthy bite out of a piece of bacon, "Just calling it like it is, Claire…just calling it like it is…"

"Anyway…it really doesn't matter, because the date was a disaster…"

"But who would've predicted that a year later, you would be sitting in my bungalow, and we'd be having breakfast after a night _together_?"

"Nothing happened, remember?"

"If throwing yourself at me…sitting on my lap and kissing me…is considered _nothing,_ well…"

Claire threw him a harsh glare, fully aware that he enjoyed pushing her buttons a bit more than she'd have liked, "If you're trying to be funny…"

"There was nothing funny about it…just ask all the unfortunate bar patrons who were forced to witness that…embarrassing…"

"I don't believe you…"

"I like to think that it was the alcohol that stripped away your… _inhibitions_ …"

"I don't wanna hear this…"

"…and made you feel free to act upon what you've been wanting to do all this time."

"Which is?"

Owen leaned into her face with a teasing smirk, and his eyes flickered hazily toward her lips, "I think we both know what you've been wanting to do…"

"No, I don't know what you're talking about…"

"Oh, Claire…always making things difficult…" Then Owen gently grasped her chin, and kissed her. At first his lips touched upon hers softly and tentatively, as if underneath his bravado teasing, he was cautious and restrained, and he waited for Claire to respond.

And she kissed him back, as she brought her hand to caress his cheek, feeling the rough stubble of his hardly shaven shadow under her finger tips, and she grazed on his bottom lip, then tasted his upper lip. Owen moaned in the pleasure, and he wrapped his hand around her waist, getting her off the stool and nestling tightly into his chest. His lips suckled her lips hungrily, teasing and pulling her lips with growing fervor and need. His hand left her cheek and travelled down, settling at the side of her breast as his thumb timidly caressed the mound. Claire shivered at the touch, and his uninhibited and spoken desire for her left her breathless with unease.

She broke the kiss, but Owen wasn't willing to release her yet as he whispered, "Claire…"

"I should…umm…I should get back…home…"

He kept his hand firmly wrapped around her waist, "There you go again, Claire…bailin' out when things get real…"

"I'm not bailing…"

"Then stay…stay with me…" He peered deep into her eyes, as if unsure of the tumultuous waters, and he pleaded, "Claire…you don't have to go…"

"Owen…I can't…"

"Yes…you can…Claire, can we at least talk about this?"

"Owen…"

"Alright…" He dropped his hands off from her with heave of reluctance, "I'll drive you to your car, but this conversation is not over."

. . . . . . . . . . .

"This way, Ms. Dearing."

"Thank you."

Claire was summoned to the headquarters office early Monday morning, and having received no agenda or purpose of the meeting, she was left to follow the receptionist silently and dutifully down the hallway. She was led into a large meeting room, and the first face she saw sitting at the middle of the table was…Owen.

Claire stopped dead in her tracks, startled out of breath at finding Owen sitting in the room, the very person whose existence tormented her for the last two days. She hadn't spoken to him since Saturday morning in his bungalow…since their breakfast…and since their kiss. She couldn't explain, even to herself, why she felt compelled to run out of there when he kissed her, even though she kissed him back…and could very well admit that she could reciprocate the passion he had shown to her. She knew it wasn't fair for Owen, and god forbid, perhaps he may be harboring anger towards her, for seemingly stringing him along for a mere game of affection…or such.

He had been right about her, that her heart and mind were disconnected, and that she absolutely avoided the clutter of life that tugged at both, because it was just too messy. But no matter the complicated failings that were her own sensibilities, the truth was glaring…that Claire cared for Owen deeply, and even dared to admit that what she felt for him was passion..and love. She couldn't bear to lose him or be without him…and with resolve, she was finally ready. She was ready to tell him that her afflicted heart was for his taking, if he wanted it, and she was ready for the messiness of life, with him.

"Hey, Claire…" Owen smiled at her from across the room, and she knew he was just as apprehensive about this meeting as she was.

"Good morning…Mr. Grady." With a tight smile, she chose to project an air of professionalism in the presence of others in the room, and she took a seat next to Owen, who just smirked at her.

"Ms. Dearing…" He leaned in and whispered, "What the hell is this?"

"I don't know…why are you here?"

"Beats me. I got a call earlier this morning that my attendance was _requested_."

"Good morning, Mr. Grady and Ms. Dearing." A tall gaunt gentleman sat before them, "My name is Jack Preston, I'm the chief executive in charge of public relations, here at Masrani Corp."

And he pointed at two other people next to him, "This is Mr. Westwood and Ms. Kittridge. They are our representatives for the media and communications department."

"OK…so what do you want with me?" Owen bluntly pressed him, having no patience or favor toward such corporate bullshit, as he'd most likely have concluded already.

"Mr. Grady…" Mr. Preston smiled, showing no deterrence by Owen's brusque manner, "You're here because we are very impressed by the reports we're read regarding your participation during the Indominus Rex incident."

"Participation?"

"Yes, you were singled out, along with Ms. Dearing…" He smiled and nodded to Claire, "…as being instrumental in containing the Indominus Rex."

"Containing? No man can contain a dinosaur…especially _that_ kind."

"Owen…" Claire threw him a warning glare, but he was far too determined.

But Mr. Preston wasn't easily intimidated, and he expertly retained the placid smile, "In any case, you are hailed as a hero, who selflessly and fearlessly saved tens of thousands of lives."

"Look, I'm not that guy…"

"Mr. Grady, you are every bit that guy, and your inspirational story is just what we need to…off-set the horrific tragedies of that day."

"Excuse me?"

Mr. Preston leaned forward and clasped his hands, as if the subject at hand was suddenly dire, "Mr. Grady, we are still at the stage of conducting several investigations into how the incident had occurred. But, more importantly, the company wishes to maintain good faith of the public by accepting and responding to the heavy losses found liable, by the company."

"Losses…as in lives of people?"

"Of course, we have taken that into utmost respectful consideration." Mr. Preston's smile cracked a little, "But the company is also looking ahead, to rebuild and rehabilitate the park, and in doing so, to re-establish the public's trust and confidence for the safety of the park. You see, the park isn't just a zoo of pre-historic animals, it's a place of fantasies and dreams, of seeing the majestic wonders of old stories become real in front of your very own eyes. It is integral to rebuild that sense of magic and…intimacy…for the park to thrive again and to overcome this very tragic incident. And, Mr. Grady, you are the essential component of the vision we have in rebuilding the park."

"I don't get you…"

"You see, the problem is that while there were many unspeakable tragedies, people tend to overlook that in midst of it, there were people becoming heroes…who rose to the occasion, fearlessly and courageously, and without a second thought, saved lives of thousands of people unknown to them. Sure, this incident was horrific, but it was also a time where we see these heroes born from the tragedy."

"Look…as I said, I'm not that guy."

"Mr. Grady, you don't seem to understand the vast opportunity that awaits us at this very juncture. The public sees the park as a place of horror, to be frank. But we want to project an image of a place, of a park where there are heroes…the park with heroes of our very own."

"Wait…let me get this straight. You want to _spin_ this as a story of heroes? Are you out of your mind?"

"On the contrary, Mr. Grady…" Mr. Preston signaled to Mr. Westwood, and he projected various images on the wide screen before them, pictures of Owen in combat with the Indominus Rex. "The public has already seen these images, and unbeknownst to you, you have become quite a celebrity. You are the very person the company needs to shape its image in the public eye."

"What the hell…" Owen gasped at the pictures, "This is insane…"

"Ms. Dearing," Mr. Preston turned to Claire, "We are including you in the…campaign…with Mr. Grady, as you are the executive operations manager, but you were also at his side on many of these images."

Indeed, Claire was stunned to see the pictures, of herself running in tattered dirty clothes, "Campaign? What do you mean by campaign?"

"We have scheduled what you can call, a media tour, for the next two weeks. They are interviews at the news stations, several talk shows, couple of late night spots…"

"No way." Owen cut him off with a gruff impatience, "There is no way in hell I'm doing any of that bullshit."

"Mr. Grady, you are already a very familiar face to the public, we're only asking you to become more accessible, for the good of the company…"

"For the good of the company? The hell I'm not becoming the poster boy, to cover up for the company, to manipulate people. What happened was… _unnatural_ _…_ and the Indominus Rex was not an _accident,_ but it was a calculated and deliberate plan to design the latest thrill, to squeeze more profit. If anything, the public needs to know that."

"Now, Mr. Grady…"

But Owen turned to Claire and barraged her in anger, "Did you know about this?"

"No, I didn't."

"The hell you didn't…"

"Owen, I had no idea they were planning this."

"It doesn't matter…" He faced Mr. Preston again, "The company knew exactly what they were doing when they cooked up that _dinosaur_ , if it's called that. Whatever that happened as a result of it, it is their problem to deal with. I'll never be a part of this game…I'll never smile and pretend for anything less than a criminal negligence."

"Mr. Grady, let me remind you that you are an employee of the very company that you so disapprove of."

"Well, then you know what…" Owen stood up from his chair, "Tell whoever is listening to fire my ass."

Then he got up from his chair and walked out of the room in large bounding steps, and he didn't even bother to close the door behind him. Claire felt her head spinning, too stunned to produce a word, or even a coherent thought in reaction to Owen marching out of the room. But when lucidity slowly reared, Claire rushed out to follow him.

She saw him walking out of the building by the reception area, and she called out to him as she ran, "Owen…wait…"

At the sound of her voice, he stopped walking abruptly and faced her squarely, "Claire, I can't be part of this…"

"I know…"

"And you shouldn't, either."

"Owen…" She saw his eyes darkened with anger, "Like I said, I had no idea they were going to do this…"

"So, now you know…your company is capable of it, and not only that, has no shame for it."

"I know you're angry…"

"Claire, I can't believe this is the life you chose for yourself…this is the ladder you want to climb, your _career_ _path_ …"

"Owen…"

He scoffed at her, not bothering to mask the look of disdain, "And I suppose you came after me to talk me into doing that media blitz of shame. My boy scout hero face plastered everywhere…it'd really help out the company image, won't it?"

"I'm not here to talk you into doing anything."

"And you know…whatever helps out the company, ultimately helps you."

She coiled at his words, spoken so cruelly and given no regard to her pleading heart for him, "Owen, I don't know what you're getting at, but right about now, you're beginning to sound like an ass."

"Now, _I_ _'_ _m_ the ass…that's…that's ironic."

"Owen, this is my job…but I'm not defined by it."

"Give it time, Claire…give it time. You'll be a corporate drone before you know it, carrying out the orders like a robot…for the good of the company."

"Owen, you can tell me how much you…care…about me, but you have to understand that a part of me belongs in this world, in this company that you loathe so much." Claire's voice scratched under tension, and she was afraid to look at him in the eyes, "So, if you want to be with me, then you gotta have to accept me, and accept this world as part of me. Can you do that? Are you willing to do that?"

He stood wordlessly in thought, as if it would even exist in the realm of consideration. But what startled her was that his eyes were fixed steady on her as he said, "I don't know, Claire…I don't know."

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

The elevator door opened with a quiet thud, and as Claire stepped out of it, all she could think about was taking a nice hot bath, possibly with a glass or two of Chardonnay. Her feet ached from wearing heels all day, and her dress felt grimy and sticky from humidity of the island. It had been a long day at work, with herself essentially running the park alone, no thanks to bumbling Lowery. At least Vivian will be back next week, and her presence should taper off the manic edges of Lowery and his attention span of a five year old child.

She walked mindlessly down the hallway of her apartment building, already fishing for her keys in her bag. She had lost track of the time, but at that point, nothing mattered but to kick off her heels and to feel the coolness of the air in her bare feet. She walked while dangling her keys in her fingers, and as she turned at the corner toward her apartment, she froze in her tracks at the sight before her.

"Hey, Claire…"

It was Owen, and he was leaning against the wall by her apartment door. She hadn't seen or spoken to him for two weeks since their last conversation at the company headquarters, and the sudden sight of him brought a wave of guarded reticence and wary hesitation.

"Owen…what are you doing here?"

"I came to check out how the other half lived…"

"What do you want, Owen?"

"Claire…I came because I need to talk to you."

He had not once called her since he essentially walked out of her life, and she needed time to figure out just how she felt about his unexpected and unannounced appearance. "I'm tired, Owen…now's not a good time."

"Claire…please…"

She unlocked the door of her apartment and stepped inside, not heeding attention to Owen who stood outside without an invitation, "You can drop by the control room tomorrow, I should be there at nine."

"Claire…it took me about half an hour to find damn parking in this part of the island. Please…" His eyes drooped in pleading, "I need to talk to you. Come on, Claire…you gonna let me in or what?"

. . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thanks for reading! This is sort of my take on Claire character, as she is way too complicated to just fall into a relationship with Owen at the end of the movie, although I'm sure all of us would love to see that. But I can't get over the feeling that these two are just a little too complex for anything that easy and sappy.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 6**

"Nice digs…you did well for yourself, Claire."

Owen whistled softly as he walked around in her apartment, with his hands carelessly stuffed into pant pockets and his eyes lingering over the sparse but modern furnishings. Claire's apartment wasn't big by any standards, but it was kept immaculate and elegant, with the chic motif of white and clean lines effused in plush leather couch at the center and a glass armoire by the far wall. He walked over to the small bookcase by the kitchen, and peered into framed pictures of Zach and Gray when they were toddlers…precisely the time she last saw them before their ill-fated visit a month ago.

"So, did you get to find out how old the boys are?" Owen asked with a teasing grin, but Claire returned none of the jovial tone.

"What did you want to say to me, Owen?" She threw her blazer haphazardly onto the couch and kicked off her heels, and leaned against the armoire with her arms crossed. She was in no mood to entertain his roundabout ways, and certainly not this game of pretense as if the last two weeks did not exist.

"Claire…" He was quick to pick up on her testy nerves, and stood before her with cautious stare, "I wanted to apologize for being…a dick. I'm sorry…"

"That's it…that's all you got to say?"

"Look…I was angry, and I let my temper get the best of me. I have no excuse for it, I should not have said any of those things to you."

"Uh huh..."

"And…I may not understand this corporate world that you belong to, but I'll be damned to lose you because of it."

"And I suppose it took you two weeks to realize that simple truth."

"To be honest…" He tempered with a strained smile, "I was waiting for the company to fire my ass."

"They're not gonna fire you…"

"After that stunt I pulled, I thought I was just biding my time."

"Owen, they have no interest in firing you. You are their best asset…"

"So, I'm the asset now, huh? Like the best in the herd? Led by an electrical prong to the ass?"

Claire exhaled in a fitful huff and dismissed his biting jest, "As I was saying, they think very highly of you, and keeping you at the forefront of the company image is their top priority. They'd never consider firing you…that would be utterly stupid."

"They still wanna plaster my mug everywhere?"

"They are eagerly waiting with glue in their hands for your word of approval."

"Well, they can go rot in hell for all I care."

"Owen…you can't hardly blame them. You are seen as a hero by the public, the best thing that came out of this disaster."

"Do they know you were right there, too? Do they know it was you who brought in the T-rex? Claire, it was _you_ who saved the park, not me."

She laughed at the notion, "But the mass public isn't interested in the lowly park manager. They'd much prefer the hot, ex-Navy man who wields a manly gun and rides a motorcycle with a pack of raptors."

"So, you think I'm hot, huh?"

"Owen, the PR guy wasn't kidding when he said you're a bit of a celebrity, like the Indiana Jones of the Jurassic World…"

"Indiana Jones of the Jurassic World…I kinda like the sound of that…"

"…and the company is aware of the public's view of you and is just centralizing its viability by capitalizing on…"

"OK…don't give me that bullshit corporate lingo." He shook his head with a derisive snort, "What you mean by capitalizing, you're really saying the company wants to cash in on this hero nonsense, so the public attention is manipulated to focus on this handsome fella, and not the bloodshed."

"Owen…"

"Well, they can take their viability and shove it up their a-…"

"Owen, I am _not_ having this conversation with you…again." She cut him off with resolve, "And I know you didn't come here to argue about this…again."

"You're right…I'm sorry…" He combed through his hair roughly, "And the last thing I wanna do is fight with you, Claire…"

She stroked his arm gently, and her tone softened at his restrained spirit, "Just so you know…the company is not going to ask you to do any of that media blitz. They know better than to inflict your temper with that absurdity."

"I see they're not complete idiots, after all…"

"But…just a warning…they're not done with you. You're the talk of every board meeting, and if they had their way, you're quite possibly the face of the revived Jurassic World."

"Ah, move over, T-rex…my mug is seriously throwing you into the competition. It's a damn circus…"

"But…they're realistic in their understanding of you. You made quite an impression at the last meeting, to say the least."

"Yeah…I thought I'd lay it thick on the asshole, just so that there won't be any confusion. Glad to see it worked out…"

Claire eyed him wearily, "There is a bit of news…there's a new chief investor in the company, and he wants to set up a meeting with you."

"Great…some smug billionaire scumbag with money to throw. Don't tell me, he also bought out InGen with cash, and his plan to revive the park is to make ridiculous amounts of hybrids, because we never learn from our mistakes if money is involved…"

She knew Owen wouldn't take the news without strong sentiments, "Before you jump to any conclusions, I'm not sure about his involvement with InGen, but he is now the full owner of the Jurassic World park. And his investment and ownership is what we desperately needed to keep the park functioning and alive."

"So, who is this guy?"

"His name is Peter Worthington III…"

"Peter Worthington the _third_? Gotta have a jackass name for a jackass job…"

She rolled her eyes, "If you'd just give him a chance, you might actually like the guy."

"Really…"

"He is a thirty-five year old, self-made business entrepreneur from Australia…and his corporation donates millions of dollars each year to preservation organizations around the world. He is quite active in revitalizing and preserving the natural habitat in Australia, and he owns nearly half of the country's outback terrain for the purpose of it."

"So, he's a billionaire with a huge backyard…still a jackass…"

"Owen…" She threw him a listless glare, "He's also known to be an avid adventurist. He's lived in the African Safari, in the Amazon, even trekked out to Antarctica…and climbed the Everest."

"Am I suppose to be impressed by that?"

"No, of course not…those are just a hodgepodge of tedious activities…surely, you've attempted some of them…or none of them…"

He wasn't amused, "OK…enough with his flashy resume. What does he want with the park? What's his deal?"

"From what I hear, he's interesting in preserving the park, to protect the dinosaurs. Especially in light of the incident, Mr. Worthington's pitch to the board of directors was that the park must be rejuvenated holistically and naturally, by that he means putting the safety and the well-being of the dinosaurs as our first priority. Don't you like the sound of that, Owen?"

"Go on…"

"He went as far as stating that he does not view the park to be open to the public, but it should be a protected sanctuary for the dinosaurs. He called it 'humane preservation', that dinosaurs should be respected as mutual survivors in nature, thus should not be paraded as amusement park attractions."

"Hmm…"

"Right up your alley, Owen?"

"Anything else?"

"And he thinks the park is already overpopulated. He is envisioning the park to be a place where each animal has the freedom to roam and not feel shut in, so he's placing moratorium on creating new animals…not that we have a functioning lab anyway."

He sat down on the couch next to her, and she could already sense the shifting of his immovable persuasion, "Gotta meet the guy before I make any calls on him."

"Really…because you've already made plenty of judgment calls on him already."

"Well, you know…with these guys, it's always safer to assume the worst…and hope it doesn't get any worse than that."

"Mr. Masrani…" Claire muttered wistfully at the tragic memory, "He wasn't _that_ guy."

"Not from what I heard…"

"Owen, you can't possibly make any judgments based on rumors and speculations."

"Claire, you can't be that naive. Masrani was the damn boss, and he had Wu on payroll. You bet he was fully aware of what was going on with the Indominus Rex, and he is just as responsible for it, science or otherwise."

"But I know him…" She protested with growing indignation, "He would've never allowed it, _if_ he was aware of it. Sure, Mr. Masrani was about the flash and the glitz of the park….but he had a good heart, and he would never jeopardize the safety of the park under any circumstances."

"Well, then…assuming Masrani wasn't fully informed about the Indominus Rex, his problem was that he was too trusting of Wu. He should've kept strict tabs on the mad doctor instead of letting him run wild with disposable science."

"I don't know…" Claire nodded with resolve, "All I know is that we have to find Dr. Wu…wherever he may be."

"He might be drinking a pina colada at an island somewhere…or setting up shop again in some dark corner of the world, god forbid. The problem with guys like him is that there are always people willing to buy what he's selling. Science…can always be engineered into weapons, and Wu makes a hot commodity."

"You mean, like what Hoskins was trying to do…"

"Mark my words, Hoskins was just the tip of the iceberg…" Owen looked over at Claire, and perhaps it was the deep lines etched on her face that convinced him to change the subject, "So, this Worthington guy…what's he like personally?"

"I haven't met him yet. I believe he arrives to the island tonight…but he called my secretary to set up a meeting for tomorrow morning."

"Hmm…you seem to know a lot about him without having met the guy."

"I heard most of his background information from a board meeting. But he's the talk of the office…you know, all the girls are already obsessed with him."

"He's a billionaire…who wouldn't be obsessed with him? Get in line, behind the wife…"

"He's not married."

"You know what that means…he's a short, ugly balding chap…or a serial womanizer."

Claire laughed with ease, "Careful there, Owen…you're sounding a bit jealous."

"Claire, please…I don't have the capabilities to be jealous because I'm _naturally_ confident without having to compare myself to anyone, the least of all a lonely billionaire."

"Yeah, well…I'll make sure to give you a report on him tomorrow, I have a feeling he's gonna turn out to be a handsome and dashing fella."

"I wouldn't hold your breath if I were you." Then Owen glanced at his wristwatch, "I better get outta here…it's getting late."

Claire walked Owen to the door, and just as he grasped the door knob, he turned to her with cautious hesitation, "Claire…I was thinking…let's say I have to leave the island. Will you…will you come with me?"

"What…"

"Will you leave the island with me…"

His eyes remained peering into hers with an unwavering earnestness, and she felt words robbed from her faculties, feeling caught off guard by his sudden proposition, if it was that. Claire simply stared at him wordlessly, all the while knowing that in her heart, there was no doubt of willing surrender. But she was keen to guard her heart now, with her head getting in the way again, chastising her that emotions were but of secondary inclination and that it is better to withhold than to give regrettable promises.

Owen's voice quivered in her silence, "That was our plan, wasn't it…to stick together?"

"Owen…you'll never leave the island, because you'll never leave Blue."

"Barry is more than capable of taking care of her."

"You say that now…but you're not gonna give her up that easily."

"Maybe…" He leaned closer, a mere breath away from her, "But you haven't answered my question."

"Owen…I'm here, aren't I? And you're here…"

"But, if I asked you to leave the island with me…would you come with me?" He persevered in her faltering, "Claire, what I'm trying to say is…"

"Owen," she abruptly snapped before he could utter another word, for the fear of what words may materialize in the spoken realm, lest he foolishly declares out of heated emotion. "Our plan is to survive…and this _mess_ is not over yet, not by a long shot. I just don't know where our lives would be…after all the dust settles."

"Is that how you really think?"

"Owen…"

"Because I could tell you, Claire…I'm sure of where our lives would be, after all the dust settles."

"That isn't what I meant…"

"Claire…you need to have that figured out because, let me assure you, it's clear on my end."

. . . . . . . . . .

"Ms. Dearing…"

"Yes?"

"Mr. Owen Grady is here to see you."

"Excuse me?"

Claire stared at her secretary standing at the door, in disbelief of the words just announced to her. But she didn't have to pose another question, as Owen bounded into her office with a cheerful smile, "Hi!"

"Mr. Grady…what are you doing here?" She looked over at Mr. Worthington sitting at her side chair, attempting to remain composed in midst of this rather odd and discomfited situation, "I wasn't expecting you…"

"No…I was in the neighborhood, and thought I'd drop by to say hi…" His wry smile remained firmly intact as he walked over to her, and kissed her on the cheek, "Hi, babe…"

"You were in the neighborhood…" She knew what he was doing, but refrained from giving him a disapproving glare, or even the temptation of throwing him out of the office. Instead, she nudged him sharply with her elbow to his side, but that only incited a dopey grin from Owen. He knew she was not approving of his sudden appearance, but he wasn't to be easily deterred.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you had company." He looked over to Mr. Worthington, "Umm…aren't you going to introduce us?"

"Yes…of course." Claire managed a smile, no matter the rigid lines, "Mr. Worthington, perhaps this would be a good time to meet Mr. Owen Grady, he's a trainer for our raptors."

Mr. Worthington stood up to shake hands with Owen, "Ah, yes…I've heard many great things about you, and I was frankly very eager to meet with you."

"Hello…" Owen smiled readily, "I hear you are the new owner of the park."

"That, I am…God help us."

Owen laughed along with Worthington, but Claire knew he was busy sizing up the new boss. And she was certain that he wasn't too keen on what he saw…that of a well-built, tall, and handsome man, with boyish blond hair, ruddy complexion, and sparkling blue eyes. Worthington was indeed worthy of all the office talk, as even she was struck with his attractive persona and easy presence. He came into her office wearing plain clothes, with none of that self-aware billionaire smugness, and in his affable Australian accent, he was undeniably charming and personable. Mr. Peter Worthington proved to be quite a sparring competitor with the other talk of the office, Mr. Owen Grady.

"Mr. Grady…"

"Call me Owen…"

"Yes…Owen…" Worthington smiled seamlessly, "As I was saying, my utmost commitment is to the health and proliferation of the dinosaurs. They are such beautiful and precious animals, having every bit a right to live and be respected…I can't fathom placing their lives at risk, for mere selfish entertainment for mankind. Do I make sense to you…or do I sound like a crazy nut?"

"You make sense…"

"At this point, even at my very first meeting at the company, I'm turning out to be quite a difficult boss, as the company is seeking profit from the park, but I have no interest in that nonsense if it compromises our animals." He smiled with an easy droll, "The company is afraid I'll drive this place down to financial grave, with all my transcendental, meta babble. What they want to hear are facts and numbers…action plans and financial reports…but what I want to know is how are the animals rehabilitating, how are their lives abundant and prolific."

"Mr. Worthington," Claire broke in, "If I may…there are certain expectations, after the _incident_ , that the company is looking to rebuild and to stabilize. In a way, the company is on edge, because it needs substantive reassurance that it will keep standing, financially."

"Yes, Ms. Dearing…by all means, I understand that. But I fear we're going about it all wrong. The health and sustainability of the dinosaurs will be the only factor that will stabilize the company. Not some fast numbers generated from the latest creation, the new invention. We have to fix what we have right now, and nurture that. We have to bring back the livelihood of the park, and the public will see that and be drawn to it."

"And how do you propose to… _fix_ the park?" Owen's tone was tempered with grave sensibilities, as his face bore none of the light hearted smiles of moments ago.

"I'm glad you asked me that question, Owen…as you figure into it very significantly."

"How so?"

"By now, we've all heard of your brave actions during the incident, and the company is very intent on securing a solid commitment from you to keep your roots here at the park…"

"Wait, now…"

"But it's not what you think. You see, I did a little digging into your files and talked to people who had worked with you, such as Ms. Dearing here, who gave an excellent report…"

"Did she…" Owen gave her a quick wink, and she dismissed it quickly in the presence of the serious company.

"Yes, very admirably…and the more I learned about you, Owen, the more I'm convinced that you are the key person I need in my mission."

"Your mission?"

"Yes, my mission…to preserve this park, to keep it intact and healthy. To treat animals with respect and to adhere to the pure, naturalist practice. Very much like your own philosophy and how you view your role in this environment. Owen, the perspective you have regarding the animals are those that I desire to see adapted by every personnel in the park and in the company."

"OK…" Owen was still skeptical and he can hardly be flattered by Worthington's adulatory words, "But how do I fit into this mission, in the practical sense?"

"I would like to start by earning your approval. You backing me up would mean a lot to me, and it can only solidify my intentions for the park and for the company. You standing by my side would be my first great victory, and well worth it."

"Mr. Worthington…you're my boss. If I didn't agree with you, I'd quit."

"Please, call me Peter. And I'm never one to dwell on these nonsense hierarchies…I see us as partners, after the same goal and vision. Owen, if I had my way, you'd be my second man in charge, because already you're the kind of man I can trust, most implicitly."

"I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to say anything…I'd never consider putting you in the position where you're forced to answer for yourself so quickly. Please, take you time and think it over, and in one way or another, I'm sure we'll meet at just the right spot."

. . . . . . . . . . .

It was close to eight o'clock at night when Claire pulled into the lot adjacent to the raptors' paddock, and as she turned off the ignition of the car, she immediately spotted Owen standing high on the ledge above the cage. It looked as though he was in the middle of training, or feeding, as he insisted that even though it's just Blue remaining from the pack, it was nonetheless crucial to remain strict to the daily schedules.

Claire got out of the car and closed the door softly, and watched Owen as he talked to Blue. She didn't know why she had driven there after work, or in fact, why she had this peculiar urge to see him all day. And it wasn't just to bring to discussion on his ridiculous, and uninvited, entrance to her office earlier that day. No, it was more than that…much more.

"Owen…" She called him from the gate at the end of the ledge, "Owen…"

"Hey, Claire…" He didn't look too surprised at seeing her, "I had a feeling you'd show up here…"

"Oh, really…"

"Yes, really. Wanna come on over?" He waved over to her from the middle of the ledge, "We're just in the middle of feeding…"

She unlocked the gate and walked over to him gingerly, feeling the solid concrete underneath her feet, but still unnerved by the raptor staring at her with her darting green eyes. Claire was certain that if Blue really wanted to, she could easily jump onto the ledge. "Hi, Blue…hi, sweetheart…"

"Wanna feed her?" He then held up a dead rat to her face, and Claire just about shrieked out of her wits.

"No…I'm not touching that."

"Claire, it's dead."

"It's still a rat…" She pushed his arm away with her nose sourly crinkled, "Get that thing out of my face…"

"This is a sure way to bond with any animal, by feeding them." He pulled on her arm, not heeding to her absolute protest, and held the rat above her hand, "Come on, Claire…just throw it toward her mouth. You'll earn some easy points from her…"

"Don't you think she recognizes me already? I think she might even like me a little…"

"Doubt it…you can't assume to have a relationship with her when you've only seen her about three times. Plus when she sees you, it might trigger a memory of a horrible predator…" Owen chuckled in jest, but Claire didn't find any of that amusing.

"Great…" She looked over the poor dead rat, finding it absolutely disgusting in its coiled tail and all four feet bent in fright. But she grabbed it quickly out of Owen's hand, "Alright, I'm throwing it…"

"Wait..throw it on my cue…"

"On your cue?" She squirmed with the rat in her hand, "Owen…you better hurry up…or else…"

He clicked on a small device three times, and he called out to the raptor, "Hey, Blue…steady…come on, now…steady…"

The raptor halted before him and stood still, watching his hand that was high and commanding. Then he turned to Claire, "Now!"

Claire may have screamed a little when she threw the rat, but Blue was there to catch it in her mouth no matter where the hapless rat was headed. Claire shivered in the lingering sensation of the dead rat in her hand, and she wished upon a gallon of soap at her disposal.

"So, same time tomorrow?" Owen quipped with a sly grin, "Keep this up, you two might just become best friends. Braid each other's hair, share stories of men in your lives…"

"Haha…funny."

Owen threw another rat to Blue, and after gleeful eating, she headed to the outer cages to roam. They watched her quietly for a moment, then Owen rubbed his hands on his pants and faced Claire, "So…that Worthington guy…"

"Your little visit to my office was…smooth."

"I'll take that as a compliment…"

"Just to let you know, you weren't foolin' anyone."

"He seemed pretty fooled…" Owen took his stance facing her, and leaned on the railing, "Claire, doesn't he remind you of someone?"

"What do you mean…"

"All this talk about respecting the animals…relationships…health of the park…"

"If you're referring to yourself…"

"You gotta admit, he's a kookier version of me…I mean, I agree with a lot of what he said, but he's taking it one step closer to the looney bins…"

"Well, I like him." Claire nodded as she stated firmly, "I like that he has a clear vision for the park, and he is willing to work hard for it."

"And never mind that he is one good lookin' guy, especially with that sexy Australian accent. Oh, and the billion dollars in his bank account, that doesn't hurt."

"I think he not only brings financial stability to the company, but also great positive publicity."

"Publicity…of course. Because dinosaurs need publicity…"

She pursed her lips in annoyance, "You should be flattered that he has taken such a liking of you."

"I like the guy, don't get me wrong. He's helluva lot better than the stodgy suited assholes who's only looking for the next dollar. But, still…there's something about him…"

"You're skeptical of every corporate drones out there."

"No, it's not that…the way he talked, it almost sounded like he was trying to convince himself of it…like he was saying all the right words, but all the while he doesn't truly believe it."

"Really…you got all that from talking to him for ten minutes."

"Are you telling me you didn't think a whole lot of what he was saying…was nonsense?"

"No…"

"Some of it was straight out of bullshit…"

"Owen…"

"Claire…I'd reserve judgment of him, if I were you. Don't be so quick to trust that guy…"

"His resume checks out."

"One thing I'd give him credit for, is that he is smart…and there's a lot more to him than a resume, you know that."

She fidgeted with her feet, and eyed him with uncertainty, "Well, I'd have an opportunity to get to know him better…as he invited me to have drinks with him this Friday."

"Yup…that's why you showed up here." Owen tightened his jaw, "I had a feeling we were gonna have this conversation..."

"What does that suppose to mean?"

"What do you need from me, Claire? My permission?"

"Owen, this meeting is for _business_ …so that we can get to know each other better, for the purpose of business."

"Sure…keep telling yourself that."

He started to walk off the ledge, and Claire followed close behind, "Owen, it is _not_ what you think."

"In a way, I don't blame him. And I don't blame you, either…he is _me_ , except for billions of dollars to his name. The best of both worlds, huh?"

"Stop with this billionaire nonsense." Claire grabbed his arm to halt his walking, and she pulled on him to face her, "Owen, you're being ridiculous."

"Well, have a great time."

"What…"

"Him making a move on you, it was bound to happen. I'm not even surprised that it took him less than a day."

"What the hell…"

"Now I know why you just couldn't make up your mind about me…I was missing one hefty piece."

"Owen…don't you dare…"

"Good luck, Claire. Oh, and his little proposition for me to join in his looney _vision_ …tell him to go to hell."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thank you so much for reading and supporting this little story! And did you hear the good news? Jurassic World the sequel is coming in 2018, and both Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are SIGNED TO RETURN! Clawen FTW!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 7**

"What you want, Claire?"

"Where's Owen?"

"He'll be back by the feeding time."

It didn't come as a surprise that Barry would throw her a cold treatment, foregoing any semblance of greetings but instead, barking questions at her as she approached him by the raptors' paddock. It was expected that Owen had told him just about every one of their latest arguments, and she could only imagine the wild assumptions gleefully floating in Barry's head. She checked her watch and looked around the paddock, hoping that Owen would be back soon, from wherever the heck he was.

"Claire…what are you doing?" Barry watched her impatiently tapping her foot in waiting, "Why are you here?"

"I need to talk to Owen…"

"I know why you're here…but _why_ are you here?"

"I don't know what you mean…"

Barry crossed his arms and with deep furrowed brows, and pursed his lips in disdain, "You know, I'm gonna be honest with you, Claire...I never liked you. You're my boss, I get that. But I carried on my duties as best as I can, so I could keep you out of my hair."

"Thanks, Barry…" Claire eyed him cautiously, not able to mask the heated feeling of being affronted, "Thanks for that…honesty."

"I never understood why Owen was interested in you, let alone want to go on a date with you, and I told him that's a bad idea."

"Alright...good to know..."

"But…with everything that has happened, and how you put yourself out there in danger to save the park…I'm willing to give respect to where it's due. You turned out to be a different person than I first thought."

Barry paused a slight, as if to consider whether he should continue, "But you're still the type of woman my mother warned me to stay away from."

"Excuse me?"

"Look…Owen's my brother, and I always protect my brothers. I'm not gonna sit back and watch you string him along on some game…whatever you're playing at, it's time to quit it."

"Barry…" Claire faced him squarely, "I'm not playing games with Owen…"

"It's a game when you know how the other person feels, but you give no regard for it…and you keep him leashed up, tucked away because you're afraid to let go."

"First of all," Claire stumbled in her words, her agitated emotions slowly rearing to surface, "If you haven't noticed, Owen is not the type of man to be leashed up by anyone or anything…"

"He's in love with you…he's leashed up, and he can't even help it."

Claire stood before him with not a sound escaping between her lips, and while her first lucid reaction was to protest to his bold claim, she also knew that certain truth was spoken and she felt helpless to its admission. And Barry wasn't to be toyed with in his keen observations, and he was convinced beyond any persuasion, "Don't even pretend to not know what I'm talking about, Claire…don't insult my intelligence."

"Barry…for the second time, I am _not_ playing games with Owen."

"Then, stop this. Stop coming around here looking for him, stop going over to his bungalow for some nightly chats, and stop pushing into his life."

"Wait a minute…I don't push into his life…"

"And tell him you don't love him. Let the man know the truth."

"It's not…" Claire's heart thudded at the mere idea, as if she couldn't even bear the existence of those very words, "It's not…that simple."

"It's always simple, Claire. You either love someone, or you don't. Anything in between is your garbage, you complicating your own life."

"Barry…I get that you are trying to protect Owen, but it is never my intention to hurt him." She stammered, "And our relationship is…complicated."

"Let me tell you, Claire…Owen doesn't see it as complicated. Call it a man thing…we keep it simple, as it should be." Then Barry unexpectedly produced a small smile, "Look…because he's in love with you, I have your back…"

"Really…"

"Yeah…I want what's best for my boy, and if he thinks you're _it_ …well, then, what can I do but to support him."

"Funny how you say that now, as two minutes ago you were telling me you don't approve of me…"

"Yeah, well…all that stuff, it doesn't matter what I think or what I do. That boy isn't going to love you any less because I tell him to…" He kept the tight grin on his face, but his eyes narrowed upon her, "Just don't mess him up."

"I won't…"

"And don't come around here, looking to pick a fight with him."

"OK…anything else?"

"Yeah, and if I were you, I'd trust his intuition when it comes to that new boss of yours, the Australian Outback guy."

Claire nodded with an crooked smirk, being confirmed of what she had suspected all along, "He must tell you _everything_ …"

"Only things that matter…" Barry replied with a sly wink, and Claire knew there was nothing he didn't know about her, even that one drunken night.

"Well, I'm sure he appreciates you looking out for him."

"Out here, we're all we've got…this is our pack, our family." Barry's tone deepened again, "I mean it, Claire…don't mess him up."

But before she could respond to him, Barry looked beyond her shoulders and smiled broadly, "Hey, man…"

Claire turned around immediately, and saw Owen walking toward them with an annoyed squint, "Claire…when I said 'same time, tomorrow', I didn't mean it literally…"

"I know…" She squirmed in his blunt declaration and smiled weakly in discomfiture. And as on cue, Barry waved at Owen and walked away, disappearing into the feeding barracks.

Owen stood before her with a suspicious glare, "Don't you have a fancy date to go to?"

"It's _not_ a date…"

"Right…it's a work event, which happens to be during dinner and drinks at a fancy restaurant." He huffed with impatience, "What are you doing here, Claire? What do you want?"

"I wanted…to help you with feeding Blue."

"I don't need help. It's actually a one man job."

"Owen…"

"Plus I wouldn't want your fancy clothes to get a whiff of Blue's dinner." Owen reached into the bucket in his hand, and held out a dead rat toward her face, "Dead rats and your scented lotion don't mix, I assume."

She took a small step away from the rat in his hand, "Owen, you're being absolutely ridiculous."

"Am I? And here I thought I was just looking out for you…I just want you to make a good impression, sweetheart."

"Stop it…"

"Stop what?"

When he threw the dead rat back into the bucket with an angry flick, she took a bold step closer to him, "You're acting like some jealous teenager."

"I told you…I don't get jealous."

"Could've fooled me…"

"If you have no other business here, you better get going because I have work to do. Plus, I wouldn't want you to be late…" Owen started to walk away from her, "Blue is waiting for me. You have no idea how she expects her dinner like clockwork."

"Damn it, Owen…"

But he ignored her and remained steady on his quick and focused steps toward the paddock. It didn't help that Barry was at the gate to meet him, and after an exchange of few words, she was certain Barry was laughing as he looked toward her direction. Her fists clenched in anger as she walked to her car, wanting to throw every damn thing to hell…especially Barry's words that Owen loved her. He was acting like an arrogant jerk, with preposterous amount of jealousy no matter how much he denied it, and for all she cared, Owen could take that purported love and just shove it. Or give it to someone who'd actually give a damn.

. . . . . . . . . . .

"Claire, you look lovely tonight, as you always do."

"Thank you…Peter."

The waiter presented them a bottle of white wine, and he poured it into their glasses, of which Worthington held one toward Claire to toast, "To…Jurassic World."

"Yes…to Jurassic World." She smiled warmly as she took a dainty sip of the wine, "Speaking of the park…there are some urgent issues we need to discuss, I'm afraid."

Then she pulled out her small laptop out of her bag, which garnered a look of surprise from Worthington, "Claire…you brought a laptop to our dinner…"

"Yes, I thought tonight would be good a time as any." She replied mindlessly, just as she opened the laptop, "First off…we need to evaluate all the paddocks, we haven't had inspection reports for a month and especially after the incident…"

"Claire, darling…"

"We need the lab running, recruit and hire personnel, although I don't know how we can manage that, given we're now missing some key specimen and some of our data had been wiped clean…" She didn't even notice Worthington staring at her with nonchalance, "And T-rex…something is wrong with her. She barely eats a half-day's portion. We need to do a health check, and fix her tracker that's been malfunctioning…"

She looked up at him, "We also need to start construction on the aviary, as you know, it was severely damaged. We'd need to finalize the cost projection on that…"

But, much to her dismay and confusion, Worthington simply reached out and closed her laptop, "There…that's much better…"

"I'm sorry, but these are urgent matters that need to be addressed, sooner the better."

"Yes…well…we can enjoy our dinner tonight, can't we? The park will still be standing tomorrow morning, darling."

He laughed haughtily as he took a sip of his wine, and Claire couldn't help but feel recoiled by his unflappable disposition, "Peter, you've been here for nearly a week…but we haven't had one word together about the park."

"The park is still running, that was my understanding of it."

"Yes, we're still managing it as best as we can, given the resources. But there is a long list of action items that needs our attention, many of them very urgent. For instance, the T-rex…"

"Claire…she's a dinosaur, and by nature, a fighter. She's not some dainty, wily creature."

"But something is seriously wrong with her, and it's our responsibility to rehabilitate her. She is barely eating and is very restless…"

Worthington took another sip of the wine, which at that point downright agitated her, "Claire…T-rex is a tough girl. Why don't we let nature take its course, I mean, how did the dinosaurs of millions of years ago ever survive without proper care by a doctor?"

"What does that supposed to mean? Are you suggesting that we let _time_ and _nature_ heal her? She's _not_ going to heal by herself…"

"Then I suppose we should just helicopter in a dinosaur doctor? And where would we find such a gifted individual?"

Claire stared at him with wide eyes, finding his assured detachment and sly indifference absolutely difficult to tolerate. "Peter…we need a functioning lab, and we need to find personnel. For the park of this size and magnitude, we need a team of geneticists, recovery engineers, biologists, dietician…"

"Yes…we should get that search going…" He agreed, but with an air of casual relegation.

"But not only for T-rex, we need all the animals accounted and examined."

"Of course…"

"And Mr. Grady wants all of the paddocks evaluated for vulnerabilities and sustainability…"

"Ah, Mr. Grady…I was wondering when he would show up to our dinner."

"Excuse me?"

Worthington smiled with a certain wicked charm, "I'm just referring to the fact that his name was bound to come up in our conversation. He is, after all, the head of safety engineering…"

"Yes…he is…" Claire was reluctant to dismiss his veiled deceptive arrogance, "As I was saying, we believe some of the paddocks were compromised by the Indominus Rex…"

"If I may inquire…" Worthington paid no heed to Claire's words, "What is the nature of your… _relationship_ …with Mr. Grady?"

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Owen…what a strapping fella he is...he's an ex-Navy man, right? Tall and robust…and especially with all the hero hysteria, I'm sure he could easily stir up the girls' hearts a flutter…" Worthington nodded to her, "Wouldn't you say, Claire?"

"Peter…what are you talking about?"

"But…it's a shame that he's all heart but no head."

"Excuse me?"

"He has his heart in all the right places, and it's fairly admirable, don't get me wrong…but he lacks that, how shall I say… _finesse._ Yes, Owen has great potential, but he just doesn't have the sophistication to funnel the energy to right places, to get results. To earn something worthy of recognition…"

"He doesn't need recognition." Worthington's eye brow lifted quickly at her blurted words, and she immediately regretted for giving him the satisfaction of knowing something had pricked her nerves.

"Ah…perhaps…perhaps." Worthington smiled innocently, "I don't mean that as an insult...I appreciate such a man as Mr. Grady, he is absolutely and immeasurably useful for our park. But I'm afraid, that's where his significance ends."

"You're still insulting him..."

"Oh, am I? I do apologize, where are my manners..." Worthington smiled with feigned deference, "I do want to add, Claire...it didn't escape me that you're rather markedly different from Mr. Grady. Unlike him, you'd like to earn something in the world, and you'd very much like recognition."

"No…I most certainly do not."

"In that case, you're going to have to prove me wrong, and I'll look forward to that…"

"Can we…can we just focus on the park, please? We have a lot of work to do."

Worthington shrugged his shoulders, as he knew Claire had enough, "Alright…just tell me how much to write on my check."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

This time, the drive was clearly out of the way, on the far opposite side of the island, in fact. Claire didn't have an excuse, and she knew he'd demand one, but she was too exhausted to even come up with a lie. And he'd most likely smirk at her, and run rampant with assumptions with a smug satisfaction. But tonight, she was more than willing to concede to her weaknesses, and she'd even let him win a fight or two.

Claire pulled into the gravelly plot by the tall Acacia tree, and as she turned off the ignition of the car, she peered toward Owen's bungalow with not a light emanating. She looked at a small clock on the dashboard, and it read half past eleven o'clock…surely, he must be sleeping by now. And while debating whether she had the nerve to wake him up, Claire got out of her car and walked up the two shallow steps leading to the bungalow.

"Claire!"

She turned with a startle at the direction of his voice, and she spotted him standing on the shallow dock by the lake. The area was sparsely lit with few small lamps, and she made her way gingerly toward him.

"What are you doing?" She stood next to him on the dock, and saw that he had a fishing pole in his hand.

"I'm fishing."

"But, it's night…"

"Yeah…it's called night fishing." Owen exhaled with a chuckle, and looked at her with a side eye, "This is becoming bit of a habit, you dropping in unannounced. At this point, we should just set up a schedule, so that I'm better prepared."

"Sorry to crash into your party of one."

"The story of my life…"

Claire took a peek into a red bucket at his side, presumably for storing any caught fish but found it ruefully empty. "I see it really is a party of one…"

"Hey, give 'em time…they don't come out until after midnight anyways…" Owen scoffed at her with a grin, while casting the fishing line out onto the lake, "So…I guess the date ended early, huh?"

"It wasn't a date…"

"So you say…" Owen stared at the lake yonder, and underneath the moon faintly glowing with not a sound but of a distant sea gull looking for company, they stood wordlessly, shielded from the cacophony of the day and indulging in the serenity of night's silence. The temperance of their heated exchange not two hours ago was long gone, and neither seemed to mind each other's company, if not desired it and needed it. "Claire…should I even ask why you're here?"

"Nope…"

"OK…" Owen nodded in concession, but muttered, "But I gotta ask…how was the resident philanthropist, Mr. Peter Worthington the _third_?"

"Pompous, arrogant ass as ever."

"Ah, the monster finally rears its head…"

"I don't get it…" She heaved in a fitful of air, as if exhausted from the very subject, "All that preservation talk, about respecting the animals, taking care of their health…"

"Bullshit, huh?"

"All he wanted to do was write a big fat check…and he didn't even want to hear the details, like he couldn't be _bothered_ with it."

"What a jackass…" Owen snorted a laugh, but kept a weary eye on Claire, "There's your new boss for ya…at least he's willing to part with the cash."

"I just…I just got an odd feeling about him, like there's something going on that he's not telling me. Something bad…"

"Just say it, Claire…"

"Say what?"

By the eerie dimness of the moon, she could tell that Owen was trying to muffle his wicked grin. "Claire…I was right. I was right about that moron, but you accused me of being too harsh on the guy."

"Of course…somehow, it's always about you being right, and having to rub it in my face."

"Peaceful night fishing is a distant second to that particular joy…"

"I'm just afraid what would happen if you're actually proven wrong about something…you'd probably implode from not being able to process the paradox that you're simply a fallible man…"

"Nope…whatever you said, it ain't gonna happen."

Claire laughed into the cool air, finding the subject silly and ludicrous, but more so wanting to release the pent up energy of evening's unforeseen events. "OK…enough about Peter Worthington the _third_ …I've had enough of him for one hour."

"Whatever you say…"

She bent down on the dock and touched the gentle surface of the lake, "The water…feels nice…"

"Yeah…"

"Do you ever swim here?"

"Haven't, actually…"

"Are there a lot of fish in there?"

"Just some small lake trout, toward the deeper area over there…"

She examined the fishing pole in his hand, which hadn't moved a flutter for the last hour, "I guess you don't catch much, it seems like…"

"Claire…I don't fish to _catch_ fish. I like being out here at night…it helps me to think, to clear my head." Then Owen shot her a warning glare, "And don't look at me like that. Yes, I _do_ think…I'm not just a handsome braun, I do have a brain…"

"Really…had to sneak that in there, didn't you?"

"Just speaking your thoughts, as plainly written on your face."

Claire rolled her eyes in his view, while eagerly kicking off her heels. Then she sat on the edge of the dock, and dropped her bare feet into the water, "This feels really nice…"

"I bet…"

"I wanna swim…"

"You, what?"

"I wanna swim." And without a moment's thought, and definitely without any rational thought existing, Claire stood up on the dock, and promptly took off her blazer, tossing it unceremoniously to the ground. She moved on to her red silk blouse, unbuttoning it without a care and concern, and with hardly a blink to Owen's widened eyes toward her. If she allowed herself a breath's wait, she would admit that this entire scenario would never exist in her conscious reality, and certainly never in lucid coherence…but at that moment she laughed giddily, throwing all sensibilities out of existence, and happily so. With the last button undone, she threw open her blouse and let it drop to the ground, revealing a pink lace bra underneath.

"Claire…umm…what are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" She moved on to her beige skirt, and unzipped it deftly.

"I know what you're doing…but _what_ are you doing?"

"I'm going for a swim…" And she slinked off her skirt, as it haplessly joined the rest of her clothes crumpled on the ground. Owen's mouth dropped a gape as he took in a full view of her in her pink lace bra and matching panties. She stood tall and unguarded before him, "So, are you gonna come with?"

"What…"

"You gonna swim with me?"

"What…no…Claire, did you drink tonight?"

This time, it was her with a smirk, and she didn't think twice before stepping off the dock and went splashing full into the lake. She felt fearless in the cool dark water, as if she became one with the night and the mysteries that endured at the rocky bottom, and she swam further out into the unknown horizon. She dunked her head in the water, feeling the cooling sensation overwhelm and wash away the weight of the heated day, and she felt like a child freed…in reckless and utter abandon.

"Claire…not too far." Owen called out to her, and she was tempted to go as far as she can, just to test if he'd jump in after her for that heroic rescue. She laughed at the thought.

"Claire…damn it…" He was starting to sound agitated, which made her laugh that much louder.

"Calm down, Owen…"

"What's gotten into you?"

"Stop being a crabby old man…and get in the water. It feels so good…"

She could tell he was considering, just the way he mindlessly gripped the hem of his grey t-shirt. But he was surprisingly cautious and fickle, "Claire…just come a little closer. Don't go too far out there…"

"Fine…for cryin' out loud." Claire swam back closer to the dock, and bobbled her head at his direction, "Happy?"

"Claire…now get out of the water."

"Why don't you stop whining and…" With recklessness now in full blinding force, Claire unclipped her bra and waved it over her head, "…come into the water, Mr. Scaredy Cat."

Owen stared at her pink bra in her hand, and shook his head, "Claire…you've lost your mind."

"Oh, on the contrary…I know exactly what I'm doing." And then with a wicked grin, she flung her bra toward his face, but it hit his chest instead, and he caught the bra just in time. Owen held the sopping wet and very pink bra in his hand, and glared at her in a mystified fluster.

It didn't help that she laughed with a veiled taunt, only regretting that the bra didn't hit him squarely on his face, and she started to swim toward the murky horizon again, "Owen…why don't you come and rescue me…"

"Claire…"

"Uh oh...I just felt something slither by my legs..."

"Claire...that's not funny."

"Come on, Owen…what are you afraid of, big boy?"

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thank you for reading this little story and for all your support! And was it just me or when I saw Owen lived by that beautiful lake, didn't anybody else think there MUST be a scene of him and Claire skinny-dipping?**


	8. Chapter 8

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **A/N: I made a slight character adjustment to Lowery. Useful for this story, but I thought it wouldn't be that much of a stretch to begin with. Sorry if it irks anyone, but I love Lowery, and wanted to involve him more into the story.**

 **. . . . . . . . . . . .**

 **Chapter 8**

"Don't tell me…you don't know how to swim…"

"I was in the Navy, Claire…"

"Then, what's the problem? What are you scared of? You scared of jumping into the dark, mysterious unknown…having no control, feeling insecure of the very things lurking beneath your own feet…"

"First off…I'm not scared, so stop saying that…" Owen dropped her pink lace bra onto the dock, "And second of all, don't try to give me that psychoanalysis bullshit, there's nothing to read into here."

Then with a testy smirk, Owen swiftly pulled off his grey t-shirt over his head, and threw it to the ground. His smirk turned into that of a tease when he kept his eyes locked with Claire, and he unzipped his pants and off they came, falling haplessly onto the dock. Wearing nothing but of dark boxers and hardened body, he jumped into the lake with a splash, fully intending to rattle the silence of the night and to prove that indeed he was fearless in all elements. Claire squealed as the water splashed onto her face, but it didn't dissuade her from making her way closer to him.

Owen dunked his head underwater, then came up to the surface with a gusto, hair sopping wet but his face lit with a broad smile. "This does feel good…"

"Yup…"

Claire smiled in reply and boldly hovered closer to Owen, not minding one bit that she was naked and bare underneath the water. Owen, on the other hand, seemed to lean toward caution, if not bashful discomfiture, as he kept his safe and respectful distance from her. No doubt he was fully cognizant of her bra tossed at him not two minutes ago, and he kept his weary eyes on their distance, keeping to dutiful and…gentlemanly…regard and never crossing over, certainly not without permission of which he eagerly awaited.

"So…" He muttered under his breath, glossing over her smooth creamy shoulders that glistened in the moonlight.

"So…" Claire teased him by inching toward him, herself enjoying the sight of his bare chest and taut muscles that only begged to be touched. She was tempted…very tempted…and she dared to slink yet closer to him, and faintly grazed his chest with her breasts. Owen flinched from the touch, and took a step back with a heavy ragged breath, his face bearing a mixture of confusion, restlessness, and most definitely peaked ardor. But he wasn't too good with teases, especially as it appeared she was in full control of this situation, and he was utterly helpless to her whim.

"As nice as this is…we should head back." Owen spoke sheepishly, "The chill is starting to set in."

"The party is just getting started…" She cooed with a coy smirk, just as she circled around his still form.

"Claire, I get that this is probably the most daring thing you've done in your life, but…"

"Really…is that how you think of me?"

Owen chuckled, "Come on, Claire…you don't exactly strike anyone with the impression of being a fearless daredevil…"

"Just so you know, I've skinny dipped before…"

"That's not quite the qualifier, princess…"

"Well then, speaking of skinny dipping…" Claire scoffed at him, and perfectly in keeping with the theme of rebuffed rational disposition, she slipped off her pink panties and held in her hand. Then she threw it squarely at Owen's face, "This is how purists do it."

The panties hardly remained on his face when he snatched it off, and threw it onto the dock with a veiled scowl, "That is the second item of skivvies that was thrown at my face today…"

She laughed as her pink panties splattered onto Owen's face, and she looked upon him with expectant eyes, "OK…now, it's your turn. It's only fair…"

"Fine…" Owen sneered with a careless shrug, then promptly produced his wet boxers in his hand, "Just so you know, I've skinny dipped many times…and I'm a purist myself."

"Really…"

"And I do believe it's your turn to get the skivvies thrown at your face…" He balled up his wet boxers and readied his hand with a wicked grin, "It's only fair…"

"You wouldn't dare…"

"Did you just say _dare_? Oh, you're asking for it…"

But she was reduced to laughter when Owen threw the boxers to the dock instead, "I knew it…"

"You did, huh?"

"I knew you'd never hurt me…"

"Nah…I wouldn't want to incur your wrath…" But even with words of jest, Owen's eyes remained darkened toward her, and he breathed deeply in ragged huffs. He wanted her, as much as she wanted him…every part of him.

"So…you wanna head back?" Claire whispered into the humid air, and he didn't budge an inch as she hovered a touch closer to him.

"Do you?"

"No…"

"Then…"

"I'd rather do this…" Then she closed in the remaining sliver of space between them, boldly wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her entire bare body into his hardened frame. He brought his arms around her waist and held her firmly into him, just as she wrapped her legs around his waist, resting securely on his bare buttocks. She felt every inch of his chest against her breasts, and she matched his heavy ragged breaths as their eyes locked with each other.

"Claire…"

As soon as she heard him breathe out her name in deep guttural tone, she kissed him. Her lips pounded into his, and she felt her passion for him unbridled and overwhelming, her body shaking in the core from wanting him. The feel of his skin, in all of his lean muscles against her supple skin overpowered her senses, and even his calloused fingers as they caressed her bare back, she felt herself driven crazy and erratic with her desire for him. She was hungry for him as she kissed him deeply, and her tongue tasted the raw scent of his mouth.

And Owen returned her hunger with his own, as he left her lips to take in her neck, nuzzling and kissing her, and she felt his hot breath against her body, as she grasped his wet hair between her fingers in impatience. His lips travelled to her collar bone, suckling on every exposed skin, then he left trails of kisses down her cleavage. He wanted to take hold of her breasts, she knew, but that was too bold of a touch and he needed her coaxing.

"Owen…I want you…"

She whispered into his ear as she kissed his earlobe, taking hold of it with her lips and pulling it with a tease. Then she kissed his neck, not leaving any crevice that was wet, and her lips grazed over his ear as she held firm to the nape of his neck. He didn't need any more goading as she felt his body shudder in pleasure, and he took her breast in his hand, his calloused fingers cupping the soft mound, and he moaned into her ear with heated fervor.

"Take me to your bungalow…now…"

And Claire wasn't wholly lucid as to how they managed to end up in his bungalow, she could only reason that he had carried her onto the dock and into his bed.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

"What was that…"

"That was…" She laughed as she laid on his side, her entire body completely spent and her brain too muddled to even produce a coherent response. Her arm remained perched on his bare chest…his sweaty bare chest…and she stroked the length of his torso, "That was…round three…"

"Huh…I wasn't counting…"

"Are you ready for another round…"

"Claire…" He looked at her and gently wiped off a bead of sweat on her forehead, "I don't know whether I should be impressed…or scared…"

She smiled and reached up to his face, and kissed him, "Both…keeps you coming back for more…"

"Oh…I want more…most definitely…" He kissed her deeply, and he caressed her smooth back, "You're so beautiful…"

Claire kept her eyes closed and reveled in his nearness, in his musky scent that was so alluring, and of his tender kisses that was in stark contrast to his brusque bravado. He kissed her again and whispered against her lips, "Claire…I love you."

She opened her eyes and found him gazing into her, in still breath of fearful anticipation, but there was also resolve and will, of the declaration that could not wait any longer. She stroked his cheeks tenderly, "I love you, too…"

"Good…it's about damn time…" And with a shy elation, he kissed her again, "You belong to me, Claire…"

"I am yours…"

"And I'm the luckiest man…"

"Yes, you are…" Claire giggled as she laid on top of him, "And don't you forget it…"

"And you're the luckiest woman…"

"Just…shut up and get ready for round four…"

. . . . . . . . . .

"I really don't wanna say this, but…"

"But…?" Claire inquired after taking a sip of her coffee, as they had managed to get out of the bed…with much debate…and after taking a shower together, they were seated at his kitchen counter for a breakfast of toast, or as much as he can scrounge in his barely stocked cupboards.

"This is the last thing I wanna talk about, but the new boss…"

"I know…what a dick…"

"Something doesn't add up with him…" Owen put down his cup, "How did he make his billions, anyway?"

"I don't know…all I was told was that he was a self-made entrepreneur. I just assumed it was from business of some sort."

"What business?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "I guess nobody was caught up in the details when he was willing to part with his cash for the park."

"Right…I wanna know what the hell he wants with the park. That preservation talk was nothing but garbage, and at this point, this park is a bad investment. After all that has happened, he stands to lose a shit load of money without the prospect of making any, if at all. So why the hell is he here?"

"I could look into his files, I'm sure there's a personnel file in the headquarters."

"No, don't." He looked at her with deathly focus, "Keep your nose out of there, Claire. Just ride it out…I don't see that guy sticking around for long."

"Owen, I have access to his files, and it's my job…"

"No, it's _not_ your job…and as much as it's tempting to go sleuthing around, it's safer for you to take a back seat. Let the board handle it…"

"He's their cash cow…he's not going anywhere." She nodded, more so to herself in realization, "Unless there is a legitimate cause…a legal or even a criminal jurisdiction…"

"Jesus Christ…I knew it…I had a bad feeling about this…"

"What?"

"I knew once I started talking about this that you'd get your nose in there…now I completely regret it." Owen stood before her and cupped her face, "Claire, I love you…"

"I love you, too…"

"Then, do you trust me?"

"Of course, I do…"

He leaned in and kissed her, "Then, please…I'm asking you…don't go meddling into this Worthington guy's business."

"Owen…"

"If you trust me, you'd listen to me…"

His widened eyes fixated upon her face with an unwavering intensity, and he wasn't going to take a no for an answer. "Alright…"

"Do you promise?"

"Fine…"

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"Sorry, Owen…"

Claire muttered to herself as she got out of her car and made her way up the steps into the company headquarters building. She had told him she had to take care of some business at the park central office, although it was Saturday and presumably the office was empty, but Owen let her go. He did give her plenty of suspicious glares, as he was too smart to be fooled by her shiftiness, but she reassured him that she'd return to his bungalow at the end of the day.

"Good morning, Harold." Claire greeted the front security officer, a friendly and affable gentleman in his late fifties.

"Ms. Dearing…what brings you here at this early hour, on a Saturday?" He smiled unassumingly, "The building is practically empty."

"First of all, I brought you some breakfast…" And she placed a box of dozen donuts and a steaming cup of coffee on the marble front desk. She had picked up the items on the way there, figuring it wouldn't hurt to incur some favors, for back-up as dependent on how the day would turn out.

"Ms. Dearing, thank you…you shouldn't have…"

"Just a small gesture for the hardest working man here."

"You're too kind…" He smiled broadly at the box of donuts, then turned to Claire with a delighted twinkle, "Well, Ms. Dearing…where are you headed today? Since no one is here, everything is locked up. I'm gonna have to buzz you in from here."

She glanced at his station behind the counter, of the security monitors and a table of various buttons. "I'm headed to the records room, on sixth floor."

"Records room? There must be a party up in there I'm not aware of…"

"Excuse me?"

"There's been some heavy traffic in that room these days."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know if I should say this, but…"

"Yes?"

"You know Mr. Worthington, don't you? He's our new boss…handsome young man…"

"Harold…" She cut in impatiently, "What about him?"

"Well…he's been in the records room several times this week, and the strange thing is…" Harold leaned closer to her, as if to impart a great secret, "He's always coming by in the middle of the night, when nobody is here."

"Really…"

"He's my boss, so it's not my place to meddle in his business, you know. All I gotta say is, 'Hello, boss' and 'Yes, boss.'"

"Do you happen to know what he's doing in there? I mean, what kind of business he's attending to?"

"Haven't the foggiest idea, Ms. Dearing."

. . . . . . . . . .

"Alright, you son of a bitch…what the hell were you doing here?"

Claire slammed shut the door of the records room, and stared at the large space of filing cabinets neatly lined up against the wall. She walked by them, methodically reading the labels, which mostly were a collection of past financial requisitions. They were useless, even to her estimation. She sighed in frustration, drawing absolute blank as to what the hell was in that room that would prompt his nightly visits.

She then converged upon the small personnel cabinet, and although she half expected to find his file missing, she was surprised that it was indeed there. She eagerly laid it open, and delved into its contents.

"Peter Worthington III…age 35…born in Queensland, Australia…youngest child of three boys and a girl…both mother and father are deceased…family made fortune in real estate, the oldest child took over the business in 2005…blah, blah, blah…"

Claire glossed over the family background, finding the information tedious and irrelevant, and flipped through the file until she spotted Worthington's past business dealings. Surprisingly, or completely expected, the information was rather sparse, only entailing that Worthington was a self-made entrepreneur who renovated ways of producing clean and renewable coal. The company he founded was called Genentech, and he had a partner named Milton Gates who was now the sole CEO of the corporation.

"That's it? Coal? Are you kidding me?" She flipped through the entire file again, to check if she had missed any information, but any details on Genentech was suspiciously lacking, given that it was the source of his sizable fortune. She roughly pulled out her cellphone from her pocket and speed dialed four.

" _Hello?"_

"Lowery…"

" _Jesus Christ, Claire…it's Saturday…"_

"Where are you?"

" _What…"_

"Lowery…"

" _I'm at home…what is this about?"_

"I'm on my way, and you better be there."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"What the hell…"

Claire pushed past Lowery as soon as he cracked open his door, and she handed him a small note paper. "I need your help."

"What is this…" He rubbed his eyes before settling them on the paper, and Claire just noticed that he was wearing a dingy grey robe at three o'clock in the afternoon. "These are just…bunch of random words…and it's Saturday, what's a guy gotta do to get a break…"

"Where's your equipment?" She looked around his small apartment, messy as expected, but devoid of any electronic devices, "Where are you hiding them?"

"What?"

"Lowery…I've known you for close to five years now. I know exactly what goes on in here, so don't give me the bullshit."

"Claire…" He combed through his wild unkempt hair, "Jesus Christ…"

"Lowery…I wouldn't ask you unless it was very important, and we don't have time to waste."

"Always so dramatic, Claire…" Lowery adjusted his glasses and focused back onto the small note, "Alright…what the hell do you want me to do with this?"

"I need you to hack into Genentech."

"Claire, I don't do that kinda shit…"

She kept her stance unfettered by his expected denial, "Lowery…don't insult my intelligence, and don't make me ask you again."

"Jeesh…so bossy, even for a _favor_ …" He rolled his eyes, "Ah, what the hell…come this way…"

Lowery motioned for her to follow, and he sauntered down a narrow hallway with his robe flapping in the air. Her thoughts were momentarily distracted by a wish that he was wearing more than boxers underneath, but her attention was sharply awoken when he led her into a small room. He immediately dropped onto a chair facing a large desk that occupied the entire length of the room, and on it were two large computer screens and an industrial laptop, as well as a mess of various devices that she had never seen before. Claire stood behind him in view of the computer screen, but he turned back to face her with a scowl, "This stays strictly between us…"

"OK."

"And, it's a one-time deal."

"Fine."

Lowery turned on the laptop, and after typing furiously, the screen promptly showed a flashy home page of Genentech. "OK…so why am I doing this? What's the deal?"

"I'm not sure…"

"Maybe I should've asked _who_ is this about?"

She threw him a quick side glance, "It's about our dear leader…"

"Shit, you're kidding me. You know, I could never trust a guy with a douchebag name like Peter Worthington the _third_ …just wanna beat that guy's ass…"

"Lowery, focus…" Claire pointed at the laptop, "I wanna know everything about Genentech, but not this coal business. There is more to it than that…there's gotta be."

"Alright, let me hack into their main drive…" Lowery's fingers moved quickly on the keyboard, "Let's see…coal this…coal that…coal everywhere…"

"Try hacking into their personnel list, see if Peter's name shows up, and get into his account."

"Alright…let's see what we got…" And after a few minutes, he sighed deeply, "Worthington shows up, but…it looks clean. If he's dirty, somebody did a great job cleaning it up…or that the company is legit and they must really love their coal…"

"Damn it." Claire cursed under her breath, "No…there is something there…"

"Claire…maybe Peter is just a tool…a legit tool…"

"Milton Gates."

"Huh?"

"Milton Gates…" She pointed to the name on the small note, "He was the partner, and his account is still active, so there's gotta be something on him."

"Fine…" After a flurry of typing, Lowery whistled, "Yup, there's a lot on him…personal finances, corporate revenue and expenditure, current accounts, personnel, business partnerships…you name it, I got it."

"Let's go with corporate revenue first."

"OK…bunch of coal business bullshit…wait a minute…"

"What?"

"Some kind of deal is going down, _tonight._ "

"Tonight?"

He turned to her with a look of confusion, "What kind of coal business deal happens at midnight?"

"Any info on it?"

"It says…the deal is worth 35 million dollars, and it is 'contingent upon successful delivery of six predetermined assets in vital and pristine condition'. What the hell is _predetermined_ _assets_ , and why are they worth 35 million dollars?"

Claire gulped with a startle and clutched onto Lowery's chair, "I don't like the sound of this…"

"What the hell…"

"What is it?"

"Oh, shit…"

She grabbed his shoulder and squeezed it tight, "Spill it, Lowery…"

"You wouldn't believe the personnel list for this deal…"

"Who…" Her voice quivered, as if she was afraid to know, and her heart thudded and pounded.

"Victor H. Hoskins…" Lowery locked eyes with her, "Vic Hoskins…"

"Oh, God…" Claire gasped and covered her mouth with her hands, not able to comprehend any of it, but nonetheless not able to control the fear and dread that overwhelmed all of her senses. "But, he is dead…"

"It says he is an active personnel…he must've arranged the deal before he…died."

"Alright…so…just what the hell was arranged?"

"I don't know, it only says _assets_."

"I'm beginning to hate that word…"

"Wait a minute," he typed quickly, "during the last month, Genentech's sole revenue came from a company called Mercer Advantage…over a half of billion dollars…"

"Mercer Advantage…never heard of it."

"Then, let's take a look…" Lowery switched over to a large computer screen, "I'm hacking into their main data bank. What have we got here…"

Claire watched the large screen and waited patiently next to Lowery, until he muttered, "Something serious is going down…"

"What?"

"Look…" He pointed to the screen, "This is Mercer Advantage…and it took me three routes to get to here...the company makes _weapons_."

"Weapons…"

"But not just any weapons, not like the kind we see on TV…they make serious weapons, many of them highly illegal…"

"OK…"

"Genentech received a fat check from Mercer because…"

"What…Lowery?"

"They brokered the arms deals between Mercer Advantage to these buyers all over the world." Lowery kept his finger on the screen, with names of companies and even countries, "Claire…the coal is full of shit, a cover for what they really do."

"Oh, my god…"

"Genentech is the middle man for weapons, they arrange sales…highly profitable but very illegal."

. . . . . . . . . . .

Claire could hardly breathe when she drove, and she wasn't even sure what to tell Owen. There was no doubt in her mind that he should know, but what then? What do they do with this knowledge? Alert the authorities? What does one do in this situation?

She drove through the park gate, just as she glanced at the small clock on the dashboard. It was nearly ten o'clock at night, and she winced knowing that she had missed all three of Owen's calls. She stepped on the gas pedal, knowing that the park was closed and empty, and she speeded her way through the main street, as fast as her heart can race back to Owen.

But just as she passed the main tower, she was startled to see a faint light emanating from the building in midst of pitch darkness. And she immediately slowed down the car, turning back to see if there was really a light…and indeed, there was a flickering of light coming from somewhere inside the building.

And as curiosity would have it, she had to find the culprit behind that strange light, and she turned her car toward the main tower. And as she pulled into the lot, she gasped in shock. She couldn't believe her eyes…a white Lamborghini was parked at the far corner. It was Peter's car.

"I got you now, you bastard…" She sneered as she got out of her car and stomped toward the tower, walking quickly through the swishing double door, and she walked hastily toward the light…and it was the lab. With every bounding click of her heels, she became more fuming, "Just what the hell are you up to?"

At the entrance of the brightly lit lab, Claire looked around for Peter, but the place appeared quite deserted and still. She walked through the hallway, with only the slight humming of machines detected, and she was starting to believe that perhaps she was losing her mind.

She was just about at the far wall of the lab when she saw him…he was standing to his back to the glass door, and he was silently looking at something. She gritted her teeth and went straight to him, "Peter…"

He turned quickly at her voice, with his countenance ashen from shock, "Claire…"

"What the _hell_ is going on here?"

"Claire, darling…"

"Don't you dare give me that _shit_. What the hell are you doing?"

But it was at that moment that she realized someone was standing behind Worthington, and the sight of that being stunned and petrified her to the core. "Hello, Ms. Dearing…"

"Dr. Wu…" She felt all of her limbs stricken stiff with shock, and she could barely utter few words of coherence.

"Ah, you're just in time…" He smiled warmly to her, which only struck her as maniacal and demented.

"For what…"

"The birth of my babies."

" _Your_ babies?"

"Yes… _my_ babies."

Then Peter stepped aside to reveal a brightly lit glass capsule, containing six large white eggs. And one of them just cracked open.

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thank you for reading and your support for this little story!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **A/N: I made a slight character adjustment to Owen, specifically I gave him a very useful "skill". My apologies if this irks any character purists out there, but Owen just strikes me as someone who knows how to do just about anything. And Lowery is still the hacker Lowery.**

 **. . . . . . . . . . .**

 **Chapter 9**

"What do you mean _your_ babies?"

"Ah, patience, Ms. Dearing." Wu's cloying smile made her sick to her stomach, but as he waved his hand above the white eggs, all of her sense remained rapt on the tiny clawed hand that just emerged through the shell. Soon all but one egg had cracked, and Wu bent down to whisper to it, "We got ourselves a late bloomer…a girl after my own heart…"

The claws grabbed the shells and fought through, pushing and pulling, as if the claws themselves were the machines with which they were just learning to own. Soon a tiny head poked through, a slimy green face with grey slit pupils, with its wet beak gasping for its first breath. Wu smiled warmly, "The first foray into the brand new world…it's beautiful, isn't it?"

"They're raptors…" The realization dawned on Claire, as those claws were all too familiar to her, "You made raptors…"

"Not just any raptors, Ms. Dearing…"

"What did you do…"

Just as the last egg cracked from a sharp claw that peeked its way at the top, Wu smiled and signaled to Worthington, "All six are good to go." And Worthington simply nodded and pulled out his cellphone, and quickly walked out of the room.

Claire gritted her teeth and demanded attention, "What's going to happen to these raptors? What the hell are you up to?"

"Ms. Dearing…the Indominus Rex was an unfortunate situation." Wu spoke with a droll reassurance as he washed his hands at the sink.

"Excuse me?"

"And it boiled down to one grave miscalculation."

"What…that you made a blood thirsty monster who killed for sport?"

"Certain elements could've been tweaked…"

"You were completely reckless."

"Science is unpredictable…she herself is a wild beast." Wu kept his adoring eyes upon the six raptors that had all emerged from the shells and were now licking what looked to be amniotic fluids on their bodies. "What is life but of trial and error…"

Claire fumed at his nonchalant detachment, "How can you say that when people _died_ …from your science experiment? This was no trial and error…this was murder."

"It was the size, Ms. Dearing…" He faced her squarely, "That was my grave and most unfortunate miscalculation…Indominus Rex was simply too big, thus impractical and unmanageable."

"What did you expect? You used T-rex DNA…"

"Yes…and I've noted that bigger isn't always better…they're just splashier." He smiled with a tight posture, "So I made adjustments…made a better model, a better version."

"These are _real_ animals…not a new model car you roll out of scraps…"

"Yes…of course, these animals are indeed alive and real. But, don't let your noble intent blind you to the fact that, at bottom line, these animals owe their existence to science. They are inexplicably, the science experiment gone right."

"Gone horribly wrong…"

"Ah, but that's the beauty of science…midst of trial and error, midst of failures and successes, we learn…we learn to do things better. That's the other side of the proverbial coin."

"So…are you telling me you're making _another_ Indominus Rex?"

"Oh, no…that's preposterous and needless to say, counter-intuitive." He had the nerve to laugh, "We push forward…we eliminate the deficiency, and accentuate the efficiency."

"What are you saying…"

Wu held up a croaking baby raptor in his hand and gently stroked her head, and the raptor closed her eyes to the first touch received, all the while Claire wanted to snatch the animal and shield her from the man. ""These raptors…are sensational. Such intelligent, amazing, and _efficient_ creatures. The best of the park…the best of my creations."

"They are not _your_ creations…"

Wu smiled at her, as if mocking her insistence, "And I've made them even better…"

"Oh, God…" Her heart dropped to the depths, and fear gripped all of her faculties. She couldn't bear to hear what Wu had done to them.

He held the raptor toward her, as if it was a prize won, "You're looking at the new and improved."

"What have you done…"

He returned the raptor to her pack, and just as he was about to speak, Worthington walked back into the room, "It's ready…we're good to go."

"Perfect." Wu nodded to him, and placed a black carrying case on the counter. As soon as Claire saw the case, she knew what was going to happen.

"Where are you going with them? What's going to happen to them?" Claire glared at Worthington, who stayed against the wall at her silent warning.

"Don't you worry about the raptors, Ms. Dearing. They're already a very precious commodity…worth far more than some of us, I presume."

"Tell me…" Claire took a step forward as Wu started to place each raptor in the case, "What have you done to them?"

"When I said they're my babies, I meant every word."

"What…"

"Ms. Dearing…" Wu smiled with a sickly stare, "I've given them the ultimate…tweak."

"No…" Claire held her breath, for she already knew in her heart what the devil had done.

Wu withheld from speaking until all six raptors were safely in the case, and he shut them in securely. He then collected his laptop and a briefcase, as if getting ready to leave. But he turned to Claire at the door, "Ms. Dearing…I gather that perhaps you've already figured it out."

"You've given them human DNA… _your_ DNA…"

"Ah, of course…if I'm ever given a reason to doubt you, it'd never be your intelligence."

"You made them more dangerous…like ruthless killers."

"On the contrary, Ms. Dearing…by human DNA, I gave them reason, conscience, rationale…and the ability to be trained, to recognize allegiance, and to strategize. I gave them intellectual upper hand, but the lethal aspect, that's all raptor in its purest masterpiece."

"What you've done is wrong…and unethical…"

"There is a quaint virtue in upholding a rather…symbiotic…divorce between philosophy and science. It is foolishness to lament over such philosophical quandaries when science answers to whole another realm of possibilities."

Claire quickly walked over to the door and stood in front of Wu, however ineffectively barring him from leaving, "Don't do this…don't leave with them. I know in your heart, you agree that what you've done to them is…unnatural. Dr. Wu, I'm begging you…don't leave…we can work through this…"

"Ms. Dearing…" He laughed ever so haughtily, "I'm starting to question your intelligence, and I'd hate to renege on my previous sentiments."

"Claire…" Worthington spoke from behind, but she only shot him a deathly glare.

"Good bye, Ms. Dearing. Until next time…" Wu then exited out of the room, but as Claire attempted to follow him, Worthington held onto her arm and pitted her against the wall until Wu disappeared out of the building.

"Get your hands off of me…" Claire roughly pulled her arm out of his grasp, "How could you…"

"Claire, darling…"

"Don't you dare call me that."

"I could explain…"

"You can explain to the proper authorities…" But as Claire attempted to walk out of the room, Worthington grabbed her again and pushed her into the room. Then he quickly pressed the key pad on the outside wall, and the glass door swished closed, effectively locking her in.

"Peter…open the damn door."

"Sorry, Claire…I can't do that."

"Peter…" She softened her tone, "Please…you can't leave me in here."

"Claire…I know what you're thinking, that I've done something unforgivable, unconscionable…"

"How about _illegal_? You're selling these raptors, as weapons? Are you out of your mind?"

Worthington smiled against the glass, "I suppose you did your homework on me, Claire…lesson learned on never to underestimate you again."

"Peter, open this door…we could still stop Wu. If those raptors fall in the wrong hands, God knows what could happen. Peter…please…you know this is wrong…"

"Claire, this isn't about what's right or wrong…but what is profitable. Do you know how much this lab is bringing into the company? One transaction of these babies makes the entire month's revenue from the park look like chump change. Tonight, we stand to make…"

"Peter," she effectively cut in before he could utter the damn cash profit, "This is _not_ about the money."

"Don't be so naive, Claire. This is all about the money, especially after the incident a month ago. In case you're not aware, the company is deep in the hole, and the damn park isn't gonna do it."

"What do you mean…what are you gonna do with the park?"

He breathed in heavily, and kept his fearful gaze upon her, "Claire…I could only tell you my plans for the park…if you could be at my side, supporting me. We could make this work…we would make great partners…"

"Peter…say it…"

"The park cannot be sustained any more, the financial loss is just too great, and it's bleeding dry even as we speak. It's no longer a profitable investment for the company, and the rehabilitation cost projection will never match the revenue. The park…is a lost cause."

"So…"

"So, I'm shutting it down. Except for the lab…"

She punched the glass where his face was reflected, "I don't believe this! You're leaving the lab open so that Wu, the mad scientist can cook up weapons, is that it? And sell them to the highest bidder?"

"Claire…we stand to earn millions of dollars in just one transaction. And we have buyers from all over the world…"

"And all this will end when the entire world is on fire."

"Claire…please…won't you consider partnering with me? This is a great opportunity…"

"Peter," she locked eyes with him, "I'd rather die than stand by your side."

"Well…so you say…" He challenged her with a snort, "Just so you know, there's nothing _illegal_ about this, so you can put away that self-righteous act."

"You're selling weaponized animals…"

"Whether they're _weapons_ , that remains to be debatable. And we're merely providing items that were legally and contractually agreed upon by a third-party…"

"Genentech…"

Worthington laughed into the air, "I need to inform my team to do a better job of cleaning that stuff up."

"Peter, believe me…you will not go far with this."

"Claire…contrary to your little belief, this will go on with or without you. Wu has been planning this for a long time…with Hoskins until, well, he got eaten."

"No…it's _you_ …you don't have the mettle for this, and you certainly won't get away with it…"

"Oh, Claire…don't insult my intelligence." His sneering posture toward her was something she had never seen before, "Everything you've heard and seen tonight…it's all hearsay. You're not dealing with bunch of morons here. Our trail is clean, there is nothing in the room that'd ever implicate what's happened tonight. Wu is off the map…and I'd suggest that you don't underestimate me ever again."

"You crazy son of a bitch…"

"No, darling…crazy and _filthy_ _rich_ son of a bitch." Then Worthington straightened his tie and brushed off his jacket, "Good bye, Claire. I will inform the board that you have resigned, effective immediately."

As soon as he stepped away from her view, Claire pulled out her phone and speed dialed four.

" _Hello?"_

"Lowery, I need you to hack into the park grid."

" _Oh, Jesus…Claire, what is it now?"_

"I'm locked in at the lab, room 3A. Get me out."

" _Alright, alright…give me a sec."_

It took Lowery merely two minutes, but as Claire rushed out of the building, not another soul was seen and the only sound that greeted her was the howling wind and deathly stillness of the ghostly moon.

. . . . . . . . . . .

"Claire…damn it… _damn_ _it_."

"Owen…"

"Something could've happened to you…do you realize that?"

She placed a hand upon Owen's chest to assuage his peaked temperance, "I know I did about a million things you asked me not to do…but we have to get to Wu right now. I won't let him hand over those raptors…"

"Raptors with human DNA…those sick bastards…"

"Wu got at least an hour ahead…but Peter, we could still find him, he shouldn't be that far." Then Claire grabbed his arm in sudden realization, "We need Lowery…we need to get Lowery."

"Why the hell do we need him?"

"Come on…I'll explain in the car."

"Fine, but first let me grab something…" Owen disappeared behind the bedroom door, but promptly reappeared carrying his automatic rifle.

"Why are you bringing that?"

"For insurance."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"What the hell…" Lowery scowled upon finding Claire at his door, but as she pushed past him and brazenly entered his apartment, Owen smiled from behind her. "Oh…you're here, too…"

"Lowery, I need you to find Worthington."

"How? Just who do you think I am? I'm not some covert FBI, CIA man with satellite hook-ups like some hack Genie in the bottle, I mean you can't possibly think that I could do _everything_ …"

"Did you say satellite?" Owen cut in Lowery's rambling with a flicker of annoyance, "Can you locate Worthington using his phone connection?"

"His phone connection…using satellite…" Lowery considered as he eyed both Owen and Claire, "You know, it's not as simple as that sounds…"

"Get to it…and quicker the better." Claire snapped, "Lowery, you better work like your life depended on it."

"Jesus Christ…threatening me isn't going to help."

"Lowery!"

"Alright…"

He then pulled out his industrial laptop and laid it on the dining table, with Owen and Claire looking over him from behind his shoulders. He hacked into the global satellite system first, quite deftly and quickly, much to Claire's surprise. "You've done this before…"

"I never said I didn't."

"Then what was all that fuss?"

"Well, I'm not gonna just _tell_ you I know this shit. I've gotta protect my business, ya know what I mean?"

"Stop wasting time," Owen growled from behind, "What you got so far?"

"Give me a few minutes…I'm getting closer…I think…" Lowery mumbled in midst of furious typing, but after a few more taps, he turned to Claire, "It's connecting…"

"What does that mean…"

"It means I found him, and he is…" Lowery typed some more, "He is on Route 24, heading east, just passed Kilbridge…about thirty minutes from here."

"Let's go," Owen nodded to Claire, and firmly grabbed Lowery's shoulder, "You, too."

"Me?"

"Yes, get up. And bring the laptop."

"But…why me? Why do I have to go…"

"Either you walk with your own two feet, or I shove you down the stairs, straight into my jeep."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"How far up ahead?"

"He's close…just around the bend in about a mile…" Lowery's voice was hoarse and tense coming from the back seat, as Owen's furious high speed driving didn't bode too well with him as he nervously clutched onto his laptop. But Owen didn't heed any attention to that, if at all as he stepped on the gas with menace, and the jeep roared into the new gear of heightened speed.

"There he is…" Claire pointed to the lone car up ahead, "The only Lamborghini in this part of the hemisphere…"

"What a dick…" Owen muttered under his breath as he zipped along the freeway.

"What are you gonna do?"

"I don't know…just hang on to something."

"What…" Lowery chimed in nervously, "What do you exactly mean by you don't know? And why should I hold on to something?"

"Lowery…hang tight…"

"Oh, my god…you're not serious…"

And as soon as Lowery screamed, Owen sharply swerved toward the white Lamborghini, slicing into Worthington's left, and he skidded off the road and barreled onto the black field. Claire clutched onto her seat belt as she watched the Lamborghini brake furiously into the barren field, its tires screeching like a hollow witch's call, until it hit a tree stump with a loud metal crunching thud. A plume of powdery dust filled the night air, and the Lamborghini emanated angry white smoke from its exhaust.

Owen brought his jeep to a halt behind the Lamborghini, and instantly jumped out of the car and ran toward Worthington. Claire followed after him, stumbling along the loose dirt field and coughing against the stench of burnt tires.

Owen grabbed Worthington and pulled him out of the front seat, and threw him furiously against the hood, "You stupid prick!"

"You made me crash…my car…" Worthington shrieked as he took a fleeting glimpse of his car mangled against the tree. "My Lamborghini…"

"Shut up." Owen seethed with a clenched fist, "Where the hell is Wu?"

"What…"

"Focus, damn it…" Then he slapped across Worthington's head, "Where is Wu?"

"It's too late…he's gone…"

"Gone where? Where did he go?"

"You'll never find him." Worthington laughed mockingly at Owen, "Where he went to…doesn't exist. He is…nowhere."

It was then that Owen grabbed Worthington's collar, and sucker punched him from the right, and Worthington crumbled haplessly to the ground. But as soon as he fell, Owen grabbed his collar and set him standing again, and Worthington dangled against the car lifelessly, "Now, I have to confess something…I've wanted to do that ever since I laid on my eyes on you, and it was as gratifying as I've imagined it. If you want to indulge me again, keep talking bullshit, because I don't mind putting in the work if you're up for it."

Owen shook the man in his hands, "I'm gonna ask you again…where is Wu?"

"I already told you…he is no-…" Worthington didn't get to finish that sentence as Owen punched him again, a mean blow to the same spot on the left jaw. Claire screamed in fright, and held her hands over her mouth.

Owen picked him up again and set him standing on eye level, "I could do this all night…"

"He is…" And just as Owen raised his fist with determination, Worthington started to gurgle, "He is at Tracy Island…"

"Where the hell is Tracy Island?"

"It's the third island off the coast…west of Sorna…"

"Wait…there is a _third_ island?"

"Your ignorance is not too surprising," Worthington enunciated as if he had gravel in his mouth, "There is a holding facility there by the northern shore…"

Owen turned to Claire and nodded to her, and she ran back to the jeep, breathlessly leaning into the back seat, "Lowery…did you hear all that?"

"Yup…I'm on it." He had already started on his laptop, and after a moment he muttered, "Son of a…"

"What?"

"It's completely off grid, so I had to use the satellite frequencies and infrared tracking, but…"

"Lowery…yes or no?"

He looked up to her from the screen with widened eyes, "Yeah…there _is_ a third island..I'll be damned…"

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"Owen…so if I may ask…just where did you learn to fly a helicopter?"

"I was in the Navy."

"Yes…yes…I get that you were in the Navy. But isn't the Navy a water thing? Whereas the helicopter is an air thing?"

"I was on chopper crew at the Navy."

"Huh…jack of all trades, you are…" Lowery was still nervously clutching onto his laptop ever since Owen took them airborne on the official Jurassic park helicopter, "I'm still not understanding why I had to come along. I mean, I found Worthington for you…wasn't that the deal? I've fulfilled the deal."

"We didn't make any deals."

"Technicalities…real men don't dwell on technicalities." He grumbled, but he wasn't going to put up a fight as he begrudgingly opened his laptop, "Alright…the island should appear at thirty degrees to the west."

"Lowery…you _are_ useful after all." Claire looked back at him and threw him a smile in jest. But he didn't find any amusement as he kept his face unfettered and unconcerned.

"Yeah, well…this ain't gonna win me some points with the ladies."

"There it is…" Owen interrupted, "Tracy Island…now where is that crack scientist..."

That was the cue for Lowery as he quickly typed on his laptop, "According to the heat infrared detected by the satellite, there is a lot of activity coming from the northern shore, just ahead in about three miles. If this thing is correct…we're looking at a whole bunch of people."

"That can't be good." Owen muttered as he faced Claire, "We have no idea who we're dealing with."

"I know…"

"When we get there, I want you to stay in the chopper."

"No, I'm coming with you…"

"Claire…now is not the time to be difficult."

"Owen, I'm coming with you…end of discussion."

"Claire, you stay and Lowery is coming with me…end of discussion."

"Hey…" Lowery's shrill voice shook with the roaring engine, "Don't I get a say in this?"

"No." Claire firmly answered him, "Lowery, you stay in the helicopter, as you're our… _intel_ …while I go with Owen. Understood?"

"That sounds good…I mean, understood."

Owen chuckled in jest as he turned to Claire, "I just _love_ the way you let me handle these dangerous situations. I sometimes forget I actually received combat training from the Navy, and you're…well…a woman wearing heels. But what do I know?"

"For your information, these heels were made for combat."

They soon spotted a large compound by the north shore, just as Worthington had described, and they saw that a compact helicopter was parked on the flat roof. It must've belonged to Wu, and Claire cringed in disgust as even the thought of him made her boil in anger. Owen brought down their chopper on the far side of the roof, and turned back to Lowery, "So, where is the activity coming from?"

"It is concentrated on the ground floor…straight down from five-hundred meters up ahead."

"OK…" Owen reached for his automatic rifle, but his eyes were focused on Lowery, "Keep your phone close by…you're my eyes and ears."

"Got it…"

Owen shut the door of the chopper and waited until Claire stood at his side, "I don't like this…something is not right…"

"This entire night is not right."

He chuckled lightly, "Stay at my side at all times…if you can't see me, you've gone too far out."

"OK…"

"And no matter what the fight is, it's not worth it if you get yourself killed."

"Bit logical…but alright."

Owen found an exit door from the roof at the north corner, and while holding his rifle in his hand, he led the way down the five levels of staircases. Inside the building was pitch black darkness, with eerie silence and piquant stench of corroded metal. The building looked to have been abandoned for some time, if at all ever occupied, and every sprightly step brought a soft cloud of dust in their trail. Claire couldn't help but to clutch onto Owen's arm as they neared the ground floor, the very spot of heat activity that Lowery had warned them about.

"This way…" Owen whispered to Claire, signaling her to follow him down the wide hallway. Indeed at the end of the hallway, there was a faint light escaping through a cracked door, and Owen readied his rifle and turned to Claire, "Stay behind me, you got that?"

She simply nodded in silence, afraid to utter a sound lest it invites unwanted attention. She kept her hand firmly on Owen's lower back as he slowly opened the door to the source of the light. And she stepped in right behind him.

"Ms. Dearing…what a pleasant surprise. My, how clever you can be."

It was Dr. Wu who greeted them with odd cordiality, as he stood in the middle of the room facing six large cages…and locked in them were raptors, all small and young. Wu smiled as he followed her eyes marveling, "Yes…welcome to the nursery."

"What the hell is going on here?" Owen's brusque tone rang loud in the room, "What are you doing to these animals?"

"I'm taking care of them, of course…and you were just about to interrupt their meal time. Mr. Grady, you of all people would know the importance of strict schedule when training them."

"What are the…things…around their necks?" Owen pointed to the black mechanism strapped to their bodies, which looked to be like a small box.

"Ah…those are transmitters. I'm teaching them how to process and comprehend languages, as the human DNA has given them an amazing propensity to recognize sounds. Such an advancement, and quite frankly, none that I've anticipated…"

"That's a load of crap." Owen retained all the hardened edges on his face, "We're taking these raptors, and we're going to put them where they will be safe…so they don't become military drones for your sick pleasures."

Wu laughed as if amused, "Oh, Mr. Grady…how you speak so eloquently…and so foolishly." He walked closer to the cages, and the young raptors verged toward him with wonder, "I hope I don't seem rude, but I foresee a slight alteration to your plans as these raptors are already purchased, therefore they're not mine to give away to you. And their owners are on their way to collect on their purchases…and these owners, you don't want to mess with them. Let me assure you, they will come calling with guns bigger than yours."

"Well, then…I guess we just have to work quicker to get them out of here."

"But…I do have an idea…" Wu smiled with a taunting curl, "I suppose their buyers would enjoy a certain demonstration…a show of promises displayed in action, right in front of their very eyes."

Claire's heart sank at his sickly words, and she had no doubt Wu had something wicked planned. "What are you talking about?"

"There are twenty-four raptors in the cages…" Wu nodded toward the animals, "And they're about 2 months old…quite harmless if you have just one in your possession, but potentially deadly if you have twenty-four coming at you."

"Wu…" Owen pointed the rifle at the scientist, "I won't hesitate to shoot you…"

"No, Mr. Grady…you'll be too busy saving your own life." He then pressed a button on the small remote in his hand, and with a loud chink, all of the cages opened and the raptors filed out as if finally freed. At first, the animals wandered curiously toward Claire and Owen, but in an alarming and eerie instant, their focus turned sharp and their eyes now bore a glint of deadly menace. And the raptors circled around Claire, and as Owen started his way closer to her, they converged on him as if in strategized barrier.

Wu laughed softly as he walked toward the door, and he waved the remote in the air, "The raptors were just given their one job…to kill you both. And I wouldn't underestimate their ability, given their nascent stage. They've already been trained quite efficiently and every one of them are in top _killing_ form."

"You've brainwashed them…" Owen cursed under his breath as he waved his rifle at the encircling raptors, "You made them into machines."

"No, Mr. Grady…I've given them life's purpose, and they're about to fulfill just that. I'll inform the buyers that a nice show of demonstrations has been arranged as they arrive." Wu smiled broadly at Claire and Owen, "Thank you for your participation…and good luck."

Wu promptly disappeared behind the door, and Owen turned to Claire and extended his hand toward her, "Claire…babe…come closer to me."

But as she move her foot forward, the raptors screeched and blocked her path, "I can't…"

"Alright…" And he took a tentative step toward her, but as expected, the raptors verged upon his path, as if they've been trained to keep the subjects separated. "Damn it…"

"Owen…" Claire stood still in midst of her shaking legs, and gasped from the raptors closing in the circle, with their rapid darting eyes oozing with one singular focus.

"Claire…I have twelve rounds in my rifle, that gives me the crapshoot of killing half of these raptors. At my count of three, don't move a muscle…"

"No…don't kill them…"

"What?"

"They're just…babies…"

"Do they look like babies to you?" He fumed as if confused, "It only takes one claw to your heart, Claire…just _one_ …"

"Owen…they have human DNA…"

"Yeah, well, they're about to kill us in about two seconds."

"Don't kill them…" Claire begged him, "Please…there's gotta be another way…"

"Claire…these are _not_ babies…they're not even raptors, or humans. They're something else…they're monsters, trained to kill."

"No…" She looked down upon the raptors with their claws drawn, "They didn't ask to be made like this…and they're still animals…"

"Claire…like I said, it's not worth the fight if you get yourself killed."

"Owen…please…"

"Claire…"

"We can't kill them…we just can't…"

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thanks for reading this story!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **Chapter 10**

"What the f-…"

"Lowery, don't come in here!"

"Oops…too late…"

Owen glowered at Lowery who had just barged into the room, and the raptors had already begun to converge upon him with silent but quick menace. Lowery fumbled his way against the wall, and stood frozen with his laptop held in mid-air as if it was now a body shield, "What the hell…what are these things? Some baby raptor killers?"

"Lowery…calm down…and listen…" Owen enunciated with steady focus, "I want you to find any frequency in this entire damn building, and disable it."

"What…"

"Do it, _now_."

"Jesus…" Lowery nervously eyed the raptors seething around him, but at Owen's barking he snapped open the laptop with a bungling rattle, "How long do I have?"

"Two seconds…"

"Shit…" Lowery balanced the laptop on his left hand as he typed furiously using his right hand, and he dared not spend even a fraction of a second to wipe the glistening beads of sweat drenched upon his forehead. "Hold on…I'm almost in…"

"Lowery…your almost is about to get me killed…" Claire grimaced with a sharp intake as she felt the hot breath of a raptor at her knee, and didn't even bother to mask her fear as Owen looked on to her. And in reflex, he raised his rifle toward the raptor at her foot, but she held out her hand to him, "No…Owen, don't shoot her…"

"Claire…"

"I mean it…" She locked eyes with Owen and produced a weak smile to assuage his nerves, and although the smile changed essentially nothing about the situation, he lowered his rifle a slight at her request. She lingered over his face for a moment longer, trying her best not to let go of the strength that kept her legs upright, and keeping an assured front that only masked her frazzled nerves.

"Almost there…" Lowery mumbled as sweat dripped on his face, "There! That should do it…"

Claire held in her breath in anticipation at his words and froze in her stance, and maniacally scanned the raptors in the room. And as deranged as this ordeal had started, the raptors' eyes were just as abruptly erased of the hypnotic glare, and in a flash they were brought back to their beguiling and endearing curiosity. Some of the raptors even tumbled onto Claire's leg, and she couldn't help but to smile at the sensation, as they were babies after all.

"Good…now, get the monitors off their heads." Owen's gruff voice rang sharply in the room, and he was already at work yanking off the black bands strapped onto the raptors. The animals conceded to his touch with not a resistance or care, and even Lowery was busy with his lot of the raptors.

"Come here, baby…" Claire wasn't aware she was cooing, but as she grabbed a raptor, she gently stroked the animal's head before she unstrapped the monitor band. And it startled her that the raptor didn't flinch one bit under her grasp, but instead the animal nestled into her hands, as if it craved and savored the gentle touch. Claire whispered in midst of their croaking cries, "You poor baby…"

Few more raptors encircled around Claire, and as she stroked every one of them, they prodded into her and did not leave her. They were babies…they were really babies who needed to be held and made to feel safe and secure. She nimbly sat on the concrete floor and allowed the raptors to climb onto her lap, and she gently stroked their small bodies, even holding one in her hand as it cried a tiny wail against her thumb.

"Needless to say…Lowery, you're the real hero of this joint. We would've been raptor baby food if you didn't show up." Owen muttered with a slight smirk as he unstrapped the last of the monitor bands off of a raptor.

"I just saw Wu take off in his helicopter, and thought something happened to you guys."

"Well, something is about to happen…" Owen spoke quickly as he looked upon Claire with the raptors, "We have to get out of here…the buyers are coming in any minute now."

"I know…I was keeping the place monitored on the satellite radar." Lowery flipped open his laptop, "And there are several unidentified aircraft heading this way…and they should be here in about twelve minutes."

"Twelve minutes?"

"Approximately twelve minutes to visibility…" Lowery stammered nervously, "Our helicopter upstairs need to disappear before the twelve minute mark."

"We have to take the raptors with us." Claire stood up with resolve, "I'm not letting those bastards take them…"

"Claire, they won't all fit into the helicopter." Owen heaved a deep sigh, and didn't budge a muscle as few raptors climbed onto his feet, "There are twenty-four of them…I could only take half, at best."

"We're taking _all_ of them."

"Claire, that's…impossible." His face softened toward her, "The helicopter just can't take the weight…"

"Then, we've got to do something else."

"Claire…in a situation like this, we gotta do the best we can under the circumstances."

"There's no way I'm leaving… _half_ …of these raptors, for _any_ circumstances. That's cruel and inhumane…you have no idea what's going to happen to them…"

"Claire…" Owen picked up a raptor in his hand, "We have to work with what we have. The helicopter can take up to five adults, that's approximately six-hundred pounds, give or take. Now, each of these raptors weigh about forty, fifty pounds. That means I can only take…"

"No, that's not an option."

"Claire, you have to be reasonable."

She fixed her eyes squarely on him, "I _am_ being reasonable."

"Jesus Christ…Claire…"

"OK…both of you guys need to shut the hell up and agree on one thing." Lowery nearly screamed in midst of their heated argument, "Because we now only have six minutes to come up with a plan, and faster the better."

"Here's what we're going to do…" Claire turned to Owen with a rigid countenance, "You take Lowery, and get the helicopter out of here. And I'm staying on the island with the raptors."

"What?" Owen objected with a deep scowl, "And you're staying on the island?"

"I'll lead the raptors out of the building…we'll hide out until the buyers leave."

"And then what?"

"You can come get us when it's safe."

"No…absolutely not." Owen shook his head with determination, "There's no way in hell I'm leaving you here."

"Owen, this is our only option." She laid her hand on his chest, "This island is safe…I'll be fine."

"You have no idea what's out there on the island…"

"It'll be fine…I'll stay by the shore."

Lowery stepped in closer to them in a jittery shuffle, "Guys…we have to get going, like _now_."

"Alright, alright…" Owen placed his hands on her arms, "Claire, keep to the north coast…do not go deep into the island. I'll circle around and try to land somewhere, and I'll come find you. Got that?"

"OK…"

"OK…" There was pain and regret in his eyes, but he produced a small smile as he leaned in and kissed her, "I love you…"

"I love you, too…"

Then Owen turned to Lowery as he swiftly opened the door, "You're staying with Claire."

"What…?"

"And I'm placing you personally responsible for her safety, so don't fail me, Lowery."

"Wait a minute…" But Lowery didn't get a chance to protest as Owen disappeared quickly behind the door, and he was heard running down the hallway toward the staircase. Lowery then turned to Claire, "Didn't you just say I should go with him?"

"Give it up, Lowery…" She rolled her eyes, but promptly returned her attention to the large room, scanning the walls for any door that would lead them to outside. Then she spotted a large metal door toward the far wall, "There…let's hope that door opens to outside."

Claire walked quickly to the door, and already the raptors were following her in a pack. She pushed out the door, and by the swish of cool air that greeted her face, she was relieved to find that the door did indeed lead them outside, onto the salty night breeze of the island. She turned to face Lowery, "You take the tail end…make sure all the raptors stay together…no stragglers…"

After his quick nod, she ventured forward. She had no idea where she was headed, but it didn't matter as long as they were out of the building. The air was humid but with a lace of chill from the ocean, and the ground was soggy with a layer of damp condensation upon the lush grass. Then at the sound of the helicopter engine roaring above she looked up at the sky, exhaling in relief at seeing Owen safely flying away with time to spare. She glanced back behind her, at Lowery who was fumbling along the dim trail, with twenty-four baby raptors mindlessly walking along in between.

Claire eyed the blinking lights of Owen's helicopter heading toward the shore, knowing that it'd be hard to find leveled ground to land the damn thing, and even the haphazard plan to meet up, if that was actually feasible. But she shook her head, deciding not to focus on those details but rather to concentrate on the task ahead: getting as far away from the building, and as quick as possible. And in the pitch darkness of the thin crescent moon, it was nearly impossible to gauge just what direction she was headed. But the responsibility fell upon her, and she was determined to lead these raptors to safety, and to survive this eventful night.

. . . . . . . . . . .

"OK…so what do we do?"

"I don't know…" Claire scanned the area as she stood on the sand, with the raptors circling around her, as if afraid to venture out of the pack. They had made the trek to the north beach, just as Owen had told her to, and they stood there with only the sound of the crashing waves yonder and with not another soul stirring about. "I guess we wait…"

"Do you think Owen found a place to land that thing?" Lowery scratched his head and pursed his lips, "I mean, good luck trying to land a helicopter on an island…"

Claire bit her quivering lip, not wanting to give in to the dread that waited at the threshold and threatened to overtake her heart. She looked up at the night sky of spotty white clouds, and as far as she can see, not a light emanated from the endless stretches of ominous darkness. She looked along the coast one more time, and saw nothing but shallow strip of sand glistening against the dim moon with ghostly grey tide. Owen had said he'd land the helicopter…but even to her estimation it'd be nearly impossible to land on that soft sand beach.

"Maybe he went back…" Lowery was also looking up at the sky, "Let's be realistic…there's no way a helicopter can land on this beach. I'm thinking he went back, and probably will come back in the morning."

"You underestimate him…" She snorted lightly, "He is way too stubborn to give up like that…if he said he's going to land, he'll land. And he'll come find me…"

"Of course…he did say the L-word to you…" Lowery snickered and playfully poked her arm, "So…what's the deal between you two? Getting serious?"

"Really, Lowery…?"

"What…after all that we've been through for the last three hours…after I basically saved your ass back there, I don't even get an insider's scoop on these things? Jeesh…I feel so appreciated…"

"Give me a break…"

"So…you guys now officially girlfriend boyfriend kinda thing?"

"Can you sound any more like high school?"

Lowery chuckled into the chilly air, "Alright…I get you…you don't have to spell out everything for me, I know how to read between the lines."

"There's nothing to read _between_ the lines…"

"Fine…then, I guess congratulations are in order. It's about time you two get your shit together and finally act like adults."

"Wow…this is great… _you_ are telling me to act like an adult." Claire decided to change the subject all together, "Anyways…Owen said to go to the north coast, so we're here. Let's just wait it out a bit…"

" _If_ this is the north coast…" Lowery opened his laptop, and fumbled with it before shutting it with a quick snap, "Yup, just as I thought…the laptop fizzled out of battery."

"Great…" Then Claire pulled out her cellphone and roughly pressed on the power button, but to no avail. "My phone's dead, too."

"Nice…" Lowery nodded his head, "This is precisely the moment when everything goes horribly wrong, blood and death everywhere."

"Shut up, Lowery…"

"And just our luck, we're probably at south coast…wouldn't that be funny if Owen is on the other side of the island? Really, how much you wanna bet?"

" _Shut_ _up_ , Lowery." She punched his arm with a mean lick, "Your Mr. Fatalist act is not funny."

"I wasn't trying to be funny…"

"If Owen said he'll find me…he'll find me."

"That sounds romantic and all, but let's be real now, Claire." Lowery nursed his arm where she had punched him, "Look around…there's nobody here but us. And _most_ _likely_ Owen flew back because he couldn't land. You know what that means, don't you?"

"What?"

"We're stuck here for the night, so we should figure out some kind of a sleeping situation." He looked down upon the raptors at his feet, "And figure out what to do with these guys. What if they get hungry? They're carnivores…and there are twenty-four of them…and only two of us. Are we sure they're not gonna band together and take us down…or something nefarious like that?"

Claire looked down upon the pack by her feet, at their darting eyes reflected from the moonshine upon the ocean. Each of the raptors remained by her and followed her every movement, as if they were waiting for her to do something. Their rapt attention to her was a bit unsettling, as Claire was never an object of such focus from an animal, let alone an entire pack. But their still spotlight upon her struck an eerie resemblance…of Blue when she remained fixated upon Owen for a signal before feeding. Perhaps Lowery was right…these raptors may be hungry and were waiting for her to feed them.

"Fine…let's figure out where we can spend the night." Claire pointed toward the shrouded trees up ahead, "How about over there?"

"As good a spot as any."

"Let's go…kiddies…" Claire started on the path, pushing away at the raptors gently with her hands, "Come on, now…follow me…"

"You talk to them as if they can understand you." Lowery shook his head at Claire's melodic tone at the pack, who had begun to follow her steps with certain guileless and natural devotion.

"Of course, they understand me…"

"Sure, Claire…sure…"

"Lowery, I wouldn't underestimate them if I were you…"

"Well, they might be half human so I guess anything's possible…"

"Raptors are already very smart animals…being half human might actually work against them…"

"If they got the Wu DNA, then these guys are obnoxious know-it-all dip shit like their daddy…"

"Girls…they're girls…" She led them to a flat clearing in between three large eucalyptus trees, "Let's just hope the raptors got the smarty DNA, and not the maniacal, crazy, and mad lunatic DNA."

"Smart _and_ crazy girls…sounds like a sure recipe for very bossy raptors…"

" _Anyways_ …" Claire dismissed Lowery's guffaw laugh and looked about the flat dirt patch, which may be just about a good size for the group, "I think this space works…don't you think?"

"Yeah…let me just pull out the futon."

"Lowery…" Claire shot him a sharp glare, but in that pitch darkness it was a crapshoot of whether he saw anything at all. She kicked away dried twigs and rocks, until only soft damp dirt and grass remained. Then she corralled the raptors with her hands, "Come on…get in here…"

The raptors again followed her leading without a sliver of resistance, and even some of them clung onto her arm like a child would to her mother. Claire giggled at the sensation, finding them quaintly endearing and enchanting, and she wouldn't deny that in many odd ways, she felt overwhelmingly maternal with these raptors. Claire was never one to desire having children, as she had cringed at the mere idea, especially seeing Karen with her kids and knowing how much hard work was involved. It didn't help that she had not once felt maternal inclination, but in fact the opposite…Claire loved pursuing her career and relished in her independence, so much so that she had vowed never to have kids. But, at this most unfortunate night of desperate situations, she cooed at the raptors as if they were her children and vowed to herself to protect them with everything she had.

"Wow…look at you…you're the regular raptor mom…"

"Haha...real funny…"

"Just a heart warming picture of a perfect family…except the daddy Wu skipped town, that selfish bastard."

"That's _really_ not funny…"

"He should at least pay child support…"

"Lowery…"

Claire was able to gather the raptors into a haphazard circle on the dirt patch, and she looked down upon them with bewildering quandary. What did Owen say about the raptors? Do they sleep at night, like humans do? And how do they sleep? Do they lie down? Or maybe the better question was, how does she _make_ them lie down? She really should've listened to Owen when he rambled on about them.

Lowery came to stand next to her overlooking the brood, "Speaking of Wu…I can't help to wonder…wouldn't it be just easier if Owen shot him when he had the chance? Owen just let him go…"

"Owen wasn't going to shoot him…"

"Why not? I mean, he was right _there_ …"

She heaved in a lung full of damp air, "Lowery…Owen is not the man to shoot anyone, not like that."

"You mean in cold blood…"

"If you know him, you'd know that Owen would never consider _executing_ someone for their crimes, even if he had the chance."

"So, he just let Wu go? You do realize that sick lunatic is out there, most likely making more of these hybrid wrecks and selling them for a price…"

"We will get him…that much, I know."

But just when Lowery was about to say something, the ground beneath their feet shook with a faint tremor. Claire froze in her stance, not sure of what was happening, if it happened at all. But the ground shook again, and this time with a low rumbling sound of earth trembling from somewhere deep within. Lowery muttered under his breath, "What the hell was that?"

Claire hadn't a chance to reply as the ground shook again and again, as in rhythms steady and forging. The raptors must've sensed something troubling as they started to wail and croak, and Claire crouched next to them and stroked those nearby, "Shhh…it's alright…it's alright…"

"Claire…something is happening…I don't like this…" Lowery came to crouch next to her, as the tremors increased and just about every tree and its branches shuddered in its path. The rumbling sound was now becoming louder…as if a herd of large animals was sprinting toward them. "Claire…something is coming this way…"

She kept her eyes wide and focused upon where the trees were violently shaking, and indeed it did sound like a herd of buffalos were galloping toward their direction. And in the dimness of the disappearing moon, all she could do was remain calm and steady…and fix her eyes to face whatever may appear from behind the shrouded darkness of the forest.

And they appeared. The herd of about twelve animals huddled together and emerged from the thick foliage, and ran past them along the coastline with a plume of dirt behind them and thundering vibration upon the earth. In the greying darkness Claire could only make out some barest of details, that they were about as large as a full grown raptors, but they ran four-footed and their backs had spikes and plates, much like triangular armor of a stegosaurus.

"What the hell…" Lowery coughed at the unsettled dirt in the air, "There are other animals on the island?"

"They looked like stegosaurus…"

"No way. They were way too small to be stegosaurus, plus they moved way too fast."

"But they had spikes on their backs…"

"Claire…I could tell you, those animals were most definitely _not_ stegosaurus. I saw the spikes, too…but the body of a stegosaurus, even for a baby one, would never be able to _sprint_ like that. It's impossible…their body mass and the limbs just don't allow it."

"Then…what did we just see?" She gulped down hard, feeling her own words get caught in her dry throat, "I've never seen animals like that…"

"I have no idea…something strange is happening on this island…" Lowery turned to face her, "And it's not good…"

And it was at that precise moment when a loud deafening roar vibrated throughout what seemed like the entire island, and the raptors around her bleated like a herd of sheep gone frenzy. Claire laid her hand upon them as best as she could to assuage them, but then another roar reverberated into the sky, deafening her every thought and reducing her to utter fear.

"Oh, shit…" Lowery gasped with his hands to his ears, "That's definitely an animal…a very _large_ animal."

Then she knew…she knew why the herd of those mysterious stegosaurus was sprinting out of the forest. They were running away…from _that_ animal. She focused her eyes upon where the herd came from, and saw that the tall trees were moving and shuffling, as if a large animal was breathing behind them. "Something is over there…"

"Yeah, well, we're staying put right here."

"Lowery, this is gonna sound crazy, but…" She breathed in a shot of air, finding herself startled at even entertaining the idea, "I have to go find out what's over there."

"Nope, that doesn't sound crazy…that sounds absolutely _insane_. Have you lost your mind? Or do you have a death wish I need to know about?"

"Lowery…I need to find out just what the hell is going on in this island…"

"If you get chomped…well, there goes your research…"

But Claire was determined, and to give some credit to Lowery, she was even feeling every bit crazy. She got up from the ground and out of habit, dusted off her skirt, "Lowery…stay here with the raptors…"

"What? Claire…" He attempted to hold her down, but she didn't budge. "Claire…can we just relax here…nice and easy? Why you gotta complicate things?"

"I'm just gonna take a peek."

"You can't…you can't leave me behind with these raptors. They like you…and they hate me. They're gonna eat me alive if you're not here…"

"They're _not_ going to eat you…" She started her walk toward the tall trees, "I'll be back in two minutes…"

"Claire…come on, you can't be serious…"

And those were the last words she heard as she made her trek upon the lush grass, toward the swaying trees that surely housed the large animal, if she could even call it that. The ground was uneven and uncharted, and without Lowery and the raptors, she felt absolutely alone and forsaken. This was not like her to do this…to choose to walk in the forest alone, in pitch darkness, and toward an unknown object of a fairly large and most likely a ferocious animal. But she had to do this. It wasn't just a mere curiosity, but of resolute conviction that instead of hiding in fear, she had to find out the mystery that was lurking on this island. And in a strange way she couldn't explain, even to herself, why she felt a sense of responsibility for this island…as if it was her obligation to preserve it somehow, and to keep it protected from someone like Wu who had most likely played a part in the enigmatic downfall of it.

Then the animal roared again, and the trees swayed violently, looking as if every limb of its branches would come crashing down at its appearance. She froze in her steps, feeling her own legs rattling in terror and her ears ringing from the deafening cry. But she took a brave step forward, while the entire idea just got a bit crazier than she had initially thought.

But in an instant, someone grabbed her arm from behind and spun her around, and in the darkness she reacted with a scream, but a rough hand quickly covered her mouth. "Claire…shhh…it's me."

It was Owen. And in an overwhelming rush of relief, she threw her arms around his neck for a tight embrace, "Oh, my god…Owen…oh, thank god…"

"It's gonna be alright…" He held her warmly and comforted her with his hand caressing her back, "I got you…you're safe…"

"What happened?" Claire loosened her arms and faced him, "Where's the helicopter?"

"I had to land it toward the east…the north coast was too shallow." He cupped her face with his hand, "By the way, where were you going just now? Where's Lowery?"

"Owen…something's not right with this island."

"I know…"

Claire pointed at the swaying tall trees up ahead, "There's something behind those trees…and I'm going to see what it is."

"Are you out of your mind? You don't know what's two feet ahead of you."

"Owen…"

"You're not going anywhere…and definitely not toward those trees."

"Owen…"

"Claire…" He leaned into her and even in the dimness, she could see his eyes unwavering in searing focus, "I saw what's behind those trees…and we have to get off this island, _now_."

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

 **A/N: Thank you for reading this story! And school** **starts next week...BWAHHHHHhhhhhh...summer went by so fast *tears***


	11. Chapter 11

**Keeping You in the Aftermath**

 **A/N: I know it's been ages since I've last updated! So sorry, but school kept me SO BUSY. But since we're not going on winter trips this year (dad has to work *boooo*), my utmost priority is to finish all my stories during the winter break. Once again, THANK YOU for reading this story!**

 **. . . . . . . . . . .**

 **Chapter 11**

"Owen, what did you see?"

But he didn't heed any attention to her words as he grabbed her hand and hastily pulled her along, toward the grey-lit coastline where she had left Lowery. His steps were quick and desperate, with his large calloused hand firmly enveloping her hand as if he'd never let go, and she stumbled along on the rough grassy terrain behind him.

"Owen…wait…"

"We're leaving this island."

"Wait a second…" Claire pulled on his hand roughly, enough for him to halt in his tracks and turn his face upon her with a deep scowl. "Owen…what did you see behind those trees?"

"Claire, _not_ _now_."

"Owen…" She stepped closer to him, "I need to know."

"Damn it, Claire, make this easy for once."

By the jagged heave of his exhale, it looked as though he'd finally relent, and Claire felt a small welling of satisfaction tugging at her heart. But such moment turned out to be abruptly temporary, as Owen once again pulled on her hand forward, and this time with disquieting determination. He trekked on with large bounding steps, forcing her to relent to him instead, "Not this time, Claire…"

"But…Owen…"

He seemed all but impervious to her pleadings as he charged toward the tall blades of damp grass with the air of focus and strength, just as he firmly guided her along with a tight grip of her hand. Claire was all too familiar with his fortitude at its highest persistence, and knew it was essentially useless to argue with him at that point. She pursed her lips in relegation, and stumbled behind his footsteps in silence until they reached the patchy clearing where Lowery was seen shuffling nervously by the baby raptors.

"Owen…" Lowery gasped in the sliver of the moon light, "What the…what the hell is going on?"

"We're getting off the island," Owen's voice was ragged and husky against his labored breath, "And don't ask for an explanation."

"Don't care for an explanation, I'm ready to leave." Lowery shivered in relief, "It's about damn time…there's some weird shit going on in this island."

"How are we gonna do this?" Claire whispered, "Where is the helicopter?"

"It's about twenty minutes away, toward the east. We need to move now." Owen looked up to the sky, at the ghostly dimness of the moon, "We have about two hours before sun up, and we need to get out of here before the light…before we become visible."

"And the raptors?" She gritted her teeth in resolve, "Owen, you _know_ I'm not about to…"

"I know…" He didn't let her finish, for he knew full well what was about to be unleashed, "We're gonna have to make two trips…but we'll make it."

"And where would we put them?"

"I'll radio Barry from the helicopter…we can keep them in the park paddock with Blue."

"Alright…this little lovers' chat is cute and all," Lowery slid in between them with an irate flair, "but is it at all possible to discuss the finer details as we actually walk _toward_ the helicopter in question? As long as we stand out here, we might as well just volunteer ourselves to be a tasty treat for that big and loud _thing_."

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"OK…that's the last of them." Barry poured the remaining water into the small trough, and looked about the paddock, "All twenty-four of them, tucked and safe."

"Thanks, man." Owen waited until Barry walked out, and then pressed the button to close the gate, "Couldn't have done this without you…"

"Thanks, Barry…" Claire nodded her head toward his direction as soon as he reached his truck parked by the feeding barrack, "Are they going to be alright?"

"Looks like it…cute little fellas, aren't they?" He smiled a bit, "I'll give them a check-up in the morning, after the feeding."

"Should've seen them about two hours ago", Lowery chimed in with a smirk, "They were about to claw through my throat. Little murderous weapons…they won't be so cute if they had your blood all over their tiny fangs."

Owen and Claire shot him a scowl of disdain, but Barry's face bore a fluster of confusion, "So, let me get this straight…you saw Wu tonight? And he has another island filled with dinosaurs?"

"To make the long story short… _yes_." Owen roughly combed through his hair, and Claire winced, knowing such a gesture was a vain attempt at fighting against fatigue, "There's a third island, off the coast of Sorna. It looks like Wu set up shop there…"

" _Shop_ , as in containment space for all the rejected experiments…" Lowery muttered under his breath, "God knows what you'd find there…mucked up hybrids of all kinds of shit. Little shop of horrors, more like it."

"Jesus…" Barry shook his head, "And you said these raptors have… _human_ _DNA_?"

Owen's furrowed brows creased even deeper, "And that's not even the worst of it."

Claire stepped closer to him and tugged at his sleeve, "Owen…what did you see behind the trees? You just gotta spit it out…"

"Now, I'm not certain what I saw…"

"Owen…"

"It was pitch dark, and I couldn't see clearly, if at all…"

"Bull shit, Owen." Claire gripped his arm, and turned him around to face her, "What the hell did you see back there?"

"It was…" He hesitated, as if afraid even to utter the words into existence, "It was a large animal…standing erect…and it was grey, almost white in color…"

"White…?"

Owen looked squarely into her eyes, "It was Indominus Rex…I knew by the way it looked, the way it moved…and the way it sounded."

"Oh, my god…" Claire gasped, to take hold of a breath that felt forcefully robbed from her lungs, "Wu made another one…"

"No…" Owen relegated with a heavy exhale, "Not just one…there was two."

. . . . . . . . . .

Claire squinted her eyes at the cloying presence of the seeping sunlight that escaped a sliver between the faded blue curtains at the far wall. The teasing sunlight goaded her and persisted in bringing her to waking lucidity, and she hazily wiped her eyes with her hands. Her eyes protested to her own mind, wanting none of the rude interruption from delicious slumber, but she willed them to flutter open, to take in the sight that filled her with alarming disorientation.

Claire knew she was lying on a bed, but the room was certainly not hers, and she couldn't recollect how she ended up there. In fact, she remembered being at the raptors' paddock last night, but everything after that seemed to be of fuzzy shapes and sounds. And Owen…where is Owen?

Then a sluggish presence that let out a raspy snore alerted her senses, and Claire abruptly turned to face the warm mound nudging at the right side of her body. "Jesus Christ…"

It was Owen, blissfully sleeping at her side, with his hair tussled without a care and the white sheet tugged off his bare chest. Claire sighed in relief and wiped a small bead of sweat off of her forehead, at the reprieve of realizing that she was in Owen's bungalow. She didn't know how she ended up there…but it didn't matter. Claire knew she'd always be safe if Owen was by her side.

She smiled at the ardor of his presence, and reached over to stroke his arm, finding his skin warm and pulsating with life, and she couldn't help but to leave a trail of kisses. And she studied his face, finding it endearing with almost a gleeful contentment, with none of the deep lines of fatigue from the night before. She was tempted to allow him to sleep as long as he wanted to, hoping it'd erase all the worries and anxieties that lay ominously before them.

"Hey, beautiful…" But she was awaken from her contemplation by his clear green eyes, peeking through the haze of slumber and rest, and looking longingly at her. Owen languidly wrapped his warm hands around her waist, and drew her closer to him, "You're up early…"

"Yeah…" She stroked his face gently, just as he leaned in and kissed her deeply, and his hand travelled underneath her tank top to caress her cool bare back. She moaned at the touch that seemed to ease all the tension in her body, and she pulled closer to him by the nape of his neck.

"This is certainly the way I'm planning to wake up every morning…" Owen teased into her ear as he nuzzled at her neck, kissing every crevice with his hungry lips. Claire moaned again, as she couldn't help it, and Owen took that into pleasure as his hand cupped her bare breast. His breath was ragged as he mumbled, "I missed you…"

"Owen…"

"Huh?"

He was now tugging at her panties, and Claire knew he wanted to make love to her. But…now was not the time, and she had another pressing matter filling in her heart. "Owen…"

"What…"

She pushed him a slight, so she can take hold of his face, "We have to talk."

"About what?"

"We have to go back."

"What…?"

"We have to go back...to Tracy Island."

"Jesus Christ…Claire…" Owen's eyes widened in disbelief and regret, as if cold water was thrown most cruelly and unceremoniously at his face. "You can't be serious…must we talk about this, _now_?"

"Yes…" She straightened her tank top just as he retracted his hands from her, "We have to go back…today, if possible."

"First of all," he sat up from the bed and roughly scratched the back of his head, "I _knew_ you wanted to go back there, but this _can_ wait. I'm in no hurry to go back without knowing just what the hell I'm getting myself into."

"What if…what if there are animals in danger?"

Owen shrugged his shoulders, "How about we just let Darwin take care of it? Survival of the fittest, the circle of life, and all the other laws of nature…who knows how long the animals had lived on the island, but I'm sure they'll continue to survive without human beings meddling into it."

"Survival of the fittest…as in a pair of hybrid dinosaurs terrorizing the entire island."

"And what do you suggest we do about that? As I recall, we didn't exactly have a great track record dealing with just one Indominus Rex. Look, Claire…" Owen leaned closer to her and held her arms to face him, "They're on an island, off the map. They're well-contained."

"It is not that simple."

"It is _that_ simple. I can tell you, problems start when human beings meddle with what they should just leave alone."

"Wu is out of control."

"As I've said, they're on an island, they're well-contained. Let the mad doctor have his playground, as long as he stays right where he should be."

Claire scowled at his surprising detachment, "I can't believe you're OK with any of this. Aren't you even a bit curious?"

"Nope, not really."

"Owen, we are talking about animals…living and breathing animals. I don't understand how you can be so indifferent…"

"They're sustained by the island, given the freedom and the space to roam and to live. They're not bound by some damn walls, secured in some damn paddock…I'd think those animals have it good. They're animals, allowed to live as animals."

"Well, I still think we need to know just what kind of animals are living on that island. We need to at least keep them catalogued…"

" _Catalogued_?"

"You know…keep them on record…"

"Yeah, whatever…" Owen snorted out a chuckle, much to her dismay and most likely at her expense, but he leaned closer to her with his hands grasping her bare legs, "Claire, don't you think there's something else we need to talk about?"

His green eyes were bright now, and they pierced into her eyes in search of something. And the warmth of his calloused hands upon her legs sufficiently melted her thorny resolve, and he could've had anything he wanted, without knowing it. "Like what…?"

"We need to talk about you and me…us…"

"Us?"

"Yes… _us_ …" Owen rubbed her legs gently, while an amorous smile reared upon his face, "I love you…and you love me…so, I think that makes a fair case of us now being referred to as… _us_ …"

"What are you _talking_ about? Wait a minute…are you trying to change the subject? Because I'm not done talking about that island…"

"No, no…I mean, _yes_ , I am trying to change the subject. I don't care about that damn island…not now, anyway." He pulled her closer to him, and his eyes flickered to her lips, "Claire, sweetheart…we need to talk about some arrangements…"

"Arrangements?"

" _Living_ arrangements…" Owen whispered under his breath as he leaned in to kiss her, "As in you and me…living together…"

"Owen…" Claire's fluttering voice felt caught in the startle, for she hadn't expected him to be thinking about any of this, not this early anyway. "We should really think this through…"

"Oh, I thought about it…I thought _a_ _lot_ about it."

"It's really been only a day since we…"

"Claire, I've been in love with you since the day we met…"

"Owen…"

"And I know I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

Owen leaned in to kiss her again, and she gladly surrendered to him, lingering over the sweet scent of his lips, "I don't know what to say…"

"Say, yes…" His words trembled in a low and husky tone, as if he was daunted and anxious, "Say you'll move in here with me."

"What… _here_?" She instinctively muffled a chuckle that threatened to surface, "Are you serious? Here…in this bungalow?"

"There's plenty of room for both of us."

"Umm…" She had to figure out how to tell him that his bungalow was the size of her bedroom closet, "Owen…I don't know if all my stuff will fit in here…"

"We'll figure it out. Plus, I'm not letting _stuff_ get in the way of our plans."

"Owen…" She stroked his face, endeared by his tenacious love for her, "It's not that I don't want to move in with you…it's just that your place is…a bit too cozy."

"Cozy?"

"I don't think there's enough room for both of us." She eyed the small lone wardrobe by the bathroom door, "To be honest…this entire bungalow is the size of my closet…"

"Claire…" Owen drew her closer to him, and smiled at her bewildered countenance, "Don't worry about your stuff. We'll figure it out."

"Owen, we're gonna have to do more than _figure_ _it_ _out_ …we have to plan and…"

"Oh, Jesus…Claire, it's two people living together, not some international global summit…"

"Where am I gonna put my clothes….my shoes…my laptop and work stuff…and my Eames chair set…"

"Your what?"

"Don't look at me like that…" Owen was now chuckling at her, and she knew he thought her pretty ridiculous at that point, "I was on the waiting list for two years to get them…"

"Two years for a bunch of chairs?"

"And they're not just your typical Eames…they're custom-made white calf hair…they're considered a work of modern art…""

"Calf hair…there's something ironic about bringing those into the animal park…"

"Owen…"

"Claire…don't worry about your _Eames_ chair set, or any other fancy trinkets. We'll figure it out…" He smiled warmly as he nuzzled her neck, kissing her again, "There's plenty of room for all of your stuff."

"Easy for you to say, Mr. Minimalist…"

Owen pulled her down onto the bed, which she didn't protest to, and his warm lips suckled on hers in a deep kiss, "So…what do you say?"

"So, I guess we're done _planning_ …" She teased him, which elicited a sly laughter from him.

"Yup, we're done _planning_ …"

"Your devil-may-care attitude is starting to rub off on me…not sure if that's good, though…"

"Oh, it's a good thing…it's a _very_ good thing…" His hand had made its way to her bare skin underneath her tank top again, "So…what do you say…?"

"OK…" She smiled demurely, enjoying the feel of his warm hand caressing its way to her breasts, and the anticipation was making her shudder at the core. It had always been yes…even without him having to ask for it.

"OK, you'll move in?"

"OK, I'll move in."

"Good…" She felt his body exhale in relief, and she smiled at his boyish meekness. He was now pulling at her tank top with the full intention of taking it all off, "Because I'm just about done with talking. It's time for mad, wild, animal sex…"

"Owen…" Claire laughed with unrestrained exhilaration, just as he succeeded in pulling her tank top off, and flung it across the room with a mad flair. He fell on top of her, and started on her panties. "Owen…wait…"

"Now what…?"

"There's one more thing we need to do…"

"Claire…you've gotta be kidding me." Owen had pulled off her panties, but looked upon her with expectant eyes, "Can it wait? Until after we, _you_ _know_ …"

"Yes…it can wait…"

. . . . . . . . . . . . . .

"OK, tell me again why I have to tag along?"

"Because Lowery, you run the slowest, and you know what they say about being chased by a hungry animal."

"Great…glad I could help." Lowery clutched onto his laptop tighter as the helicopter lifted off the ground, and ascended quickly in the hands of Owen at the helm.

Claire shot a quick baleful glance at Owen, and turned to Lowery seated in the back, "Because you're our satellite guy. We need you to stay connected to the rest of the world…"

"And to take the third shift for look-out, in case we need to stay overnight." Owen muttered with a light chuckle, but Lowery's ashen face indicated he was in no mood to take anything as jest.

"Wait…we're gonna sleep over there? Nobody said anything about sleeping over there…"

"You've gone camping before, haven't you? Pitching a nice tent, eating some beans by the fire…it'd be fun. Well, minus the potential ravenous dinosaurs everywhere…" Owen was starting to have too much fun in Lowery's expense, and Claire poked him sharply in the arm.

"Owen, that's enough." And she turned to face Lowery again, "No, we're not planning to spend a night there…if everything goes according to plan, we should be back in couple of hours."

"Let's…let's hope everything goes according to plan," Lowery gulped loudly, just as the helicopter started its gentle descent upon a flat hill on Tracy Island. "Whatever the plan might be…"

. . . . . . . . . . . .

"Let's take two bottles of water, and leave the rest in the helicopter." Owen handed Claire a backpack, just as he scanned the heavily shrouded forest at the foot of the hill where the helicopter rested. "Let's not go too far…."

"So…what's the plan?" Lowery secured the laptop in his backpack, "What the hell are we doing here?"

"We're here to evaluate the animals." Claire answered promptly, "We need to know what kind of species are roaming around here, and evaluate if the environment is safe for their viability."

"It seems pretty safe to me," Lowery quipped after taking a long look around the rather quiet and tranquil island. "Well, except for a pair of Indominus Rex lurking about…"

"Let's get moving…and keep it quiet." Owen signaled to Claire just as he gripped his rifle, and he walked forward, leading them down the hill.

Lowery was right; the island seemed peaceful and quiet, with hardly any noise or movement, except for the occasional birds' cry from deep yonder. They walked through a thick and lush meadow of grass for about thirty minutes, without spotting any animals. Lowery wiped a bead of sweat from his face, and muttered hoarsely, "This is almost eerie…where is everybody?"

"Be quiet." Owen whispered in a firm tone, and suddenly stopped in his tracks, "Do you see that?"

"What? Where?" Claire ducked behind him, with Lowery crouching quickly behind her. Owen kept his finger pointed at his right, and she followed his focus to a small pond about a half a mile down the incline. And she saw them…about a dozen small dinosaurs shuffling around carelessly.

"What the…" Lowery took out his camera, and started to take pictures, "What kind are those guys?"

"They look like…I don't know…possibly Ankylosaurus?"

"But, it has horns…like Triceratops…"

"They're too small to be Triceratops." Owen murmured, "And their bodies are too lean in the mid-section. They look like a cross between Ankylosaurus….and a black bull…"

"A black bull? Are you kidding me?" Lowery shook his head in disbelief, "Actually, I wouldn't be surprised…I wouldn't be surprised about anything on this damn island."

It was at that moment when they heard it; a thunderous and shrieking cry of an animal from somewhere close above, just as a large horde of birds flew away in frightened panic. The deathly cry also sent the animals by the pond into a frenzy, each scampering away as quick as their trunk-like feet can carry them. Owen looked toward the hill where they had just descended from, and clutched onto his rifle until his knuckles turned white. Lowery let out a loud yelp, "What the hell…"

"It's here, somewhere…" Owen's piercing eyes scanned the darkness of the forest, "The Indominus Rex…I know that sound like the back of my hand."

"Owen…" Claired turned to face him, wholly terrified to admit to the words she had yet to utter, "Doesn't it sound like it's coming from…up the hill? Where we left our helicopter?"

"Shit…" Lowery was starting to hyperventilate, "Oh, no…no, no, no…"

Owen didn't say another word, and didn't lose another moment, as he started running at full speed, with his eyes fixed upon the top of the hill. Claire hustled behind him as fast as she could, until he abruptly halted mid-way, behind the tall trees at the foot. Gasping for breath, her eyes followed where his rested with ghastly horror…at the Indominus Rex crouching over the helicopter. The animal appeared to consider it a mere toy, as if contemplating whether to simply knock the object off the hill, just because she can. Owen and Claire had no words to spare as they stood silently in appalled anticipation.

"Oh, no…no, no, no…" Lowery finally caught up to them, and in breathless agony, he covered his mouth in horror, "No, no, no…don't you dare touch my ticket home…"

Then suddenly, they felt the ground thunder and shake, rattling the trees around them and knocking their souls straight from the core. Owen gripped Claire's hand, as if to shield her from the unforeseen terror…until it appeared. It was the other Indominus Rex, and it appeared with much fervor and noise from the thick forest up ahead.

"Yup…there's the other one…" Lowery's voice trembled feebly, "They couldn't find another location to meet?"

The newly appeared Indominus Rex was bigger in size, and seemed more agitated than the other. He let out a long deafening roar, and disregarded the other Indominus Rex as it charged straight toward the helicopter.

"No…no…" Lowery muffled his own mouth, "No…no…no…"

"Shit…" Owen grunted as he held Claire, wrapping his arm securely upon her shoulders. He knew what was about to happen, and he was relegated to protect her from the inevitability.

Claire buried her head in his chest, and gasped against his jacket just as the Indominus Rex swiped furiously at the helicopter. At first, the rotor blade tore off, but that wasn't enough for the savage animal. It swung its claw once more, and this time with more strength and venom, and the small helicopter rattled like a baby's toy, rolling onto its side with alarming ease. The animal roared again, as if to belittle the dire situation, and swung for the last time as the helicopter rolled off the hill, until it met its fiery explosive end at the rocky bottom.

Claire clung onto Owen as the fire ascended up the blue sky, and she could barely hear his faint words subdued against her forehead, "It's gonna be OK…"

. . . . . . . . . . .

 **Again, thank you for reading this story! And MERRY CHRISTMAS!**


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